Somewhere I Belong
by DaemonicKitten
Summary: AU, ShanexKapri fic. Tired of her life, fighting the Rangers and dealing with Lothor, Kapri makes a wish that will change her life forever and help her to find a place where she belongs. Crossover with FF8.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own PRNS or FF8 or the script I am following.

**Note** : Yep, another Final Fantasy crossover with Power Rangers, but a different pairing. I guess I love doing crossovers, but hey... They're fun:) Some of the characters may seem really different, but I'm changing them for this fic. Example, Shalya is a Dr and not a princess. Also, Tori's character is a couple years older than the others, but only by maybe 2 years.

And you'll notice a bit of a love triangle which will be sorted out as the fic progresses. So please don't kill me for it. LOL. And Blake will be the bad guy for a lot of it, but i believe that part will be explained. He doesn't die and eventuall gets some brains knocked into him. LOL I have reasons for putting everyone in their respective roles.

**Ages** :

This just hit me.

Shane - 18, Kapri - 18, Marah - 17, Tori - 20, Blake - 20, Dustin - 18, Kelly - 19, Hunter - 20, Cam - 23, Tommy - 24, Jason - 25, Zack - 24, Kimberly - 23, Katherine - 25 (different time setting, Tommy will also be older at this point, like 26), Miko would be close to the same age as Sensei. Billy - 25, Bridge - 24, Shayla - 34.

Ok, these are mostly estimated guesses, and more characters will likely be introduced later.

Shane - Squall Leonheart, Kapri - Rinoa Heartily, Marah - Selphie, Tori - Quistis Trepe, Blake - Seifer Almasy, Dustin - Zell Dincht, Kelly - Ellone, Hunter - Irvine Kineas, Tommy - Laguna Loire, Sensei - Headmaster Cid, Miko - Sorceress Edea, Shayla - Dr. Kadowaski, Billy - Zone, Bridge - Watts.

More will be introduced later. I gave the first and last names of those that I remembered, so that if anyone wanted to look up pictures of the characters online, they could.

**FF8 Game Facts** :

This note is to help people understand the fic a little better.

Hyne - The game's deity.

Gaia - The game's world.

Magic - Is pulled from mystical spots where magical enegies are highest. Each one contains a different elemental, or non elemental spell.

GF - is the Guardian Force. It's like any other summons. My other Final Fantasy crossovers have Aeons, and GFs are just like them, only different creatures and powers. You'll notice that one or two might be the same, but otherwise, they are mostly different.

Garden - This is a special training facility, kind of like a military school if you will. People use different weapons and manage to learn many different skills.

SeeD - This is the special unit of Garden graduates. Their special fighting and protection force.

Gunblade - This is like a powerful sword, but with a gun built into the hilt. You can swing it like a sword, or fire it like a gun.

More definitions and such will be posted whenever needed throughout the fic, but if you'd like a better idea of what I'm crossing over, check out videos of Final Fantasy 8 on youtube.

**Summary** : AU Shane/Kapri crossover fic. Tired of fighting the Rangers and enduring Lothor's rage, Kapri makes a wish that would affect her greater than she ever realized.

**Legend** :

"Speaking"

_Thoughts_

**Flashbacks, visions and dreams**

_**"telepathic communication"**_

_notes and messages_

(Scene, POV changes)

Check out Final Fantasy 8 on youtube for videos. There's a really good cosplay one. Check favorites for TenshiofLight21 on youtube, to find it.

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Up on Lothor's ship, Kapri sighed and frowned as she laid in her luxurious pink bed. It had been another of those days. Lothor was moody, sent a monster down to terrorize Blue Bay Horbor, the Rangers beat it, and Lothor got mad. Which of course meant that Lothor threw a fit, yelling at them and throwing things.

_I'm so tired of this place._ she thought as she closed her eyes. _Torture. It's always torture. I used to have fun fighting the Rangers, but now it only hurts me. Why? What happened?_

Her eyes snapping open, Kapri groaned and rolled over, pulling her pillow over her head. She knew what happened. She did the same thing she often teased Marah about. She fell for a Ranger.

_No, not just _any_ Ranger. Him..._

Imagining the man in red spandex, holding his Ninja Sword as he brought down the monster with the help of combining his powers with the Crimson Ranger's, she blushed a little. She'd returned to the ship and hidden in her room before turning on a small viewing screen and watching as he powered down, panting a little from the battle. His dark, curly hair, and deep brown eyes staring at his friends and a friendly, warm mile curving his lips as he chuckled at something that was said.

"He'd never look at me like that. That's for sure." she grumbled lightly. Especially not when he was grieving over the loss of that alien, Skyla. "Not to mention, he managed to steal Marah away from us. No, it was the Yellow Ranger, Dustin."

She didn't hate them. No, she actually wished she could join them. Maybe make friends with them, but this nagging fear of Lothor stopped her. Shaking her head and allowing herself to succumb to sleep, she let a stray tear fall. _I wish I was anyplace but here!_

**Dream**

(Kapri's POV)

Looking out over a vast blue ocean, I noticed I was standing on a large, yellow beach with a clear blue sky overhead. Then, I felt like I was floating, and noticed as I began to fly over the wavy water as it lapped at the shore.

_**"I'll be here..."**_

Frowning and gasping, I looked around, trying to find the source of the overly familiar voice, but seeing nothing but far away islands and the endless ocean. "Why..." I asked, wondering what he meant.

The ocean below me suddenly changed to dry, cracked desert and the sky darkened into an unfriendly grey, with clouds that threatened to break open and rain down on her.

_**"I'll be 'waiting'...here..."**_

_Waiting? For what? And who's voice is that?_ I wondered as I struggled to control my body. Just what was going on?

There was a flash of dark hair and eyes before it vanished and I found myself standing in a large field of flowers, looking around as the wind blew my long blonde hair into my face. Then it changed back to the desert. "For what?" I found myself asking.

The desert changed once again into the flower field, only this time, I felt myself floating towards it.

_**"I'll be waiting...for you...so...if you come here..."**_

There were flashes of myself as I stood in the field. I was dressed in a long blue, sleevless sweater that had a long back that came to my knees with white wing patterns on the back, and tied across my chest, with a black spagetti strap t-shirt on underneath it, and a pair of black shorts. Boots covered my feet, and a streak of light brown in my hair on the left side of my face. Long blue arm warmers covered my arms from my wrists to my shoulders and on one wrist, I wore what seemed like a funny shaped crossbow.

_**"You'll find me"**_

Looking into the sky, I noticed many flowwr petals falling around me and raised my hand. One gently landed on it and I closed my hand over it, squeezing slightly and opening my hand again to reveal a white feather lying on my palm.

A breeze suddenly lifted and the feather went flying. Spinning in place, I watched as it flew away and tucked a lock of my hair behind my ear before playing with a ring on a chain around my neck.

_Blake..._ Why did I feel a strange emotion coarse through me at the sound of his name, and why was his ring around my throat?

_**"I promise."**_

A flash of a strange woman's face caught my attention, and I couldn't help but notice her haunted, yellow eyes, as she raised her hand and a number of large, jagged spikes formed above her head, befors shooting at me. Closing my eyes tight, I heard a dull squish and a pained, male groan before opening my eyes to watch in horror as Shane, with a spike in his shoulder, slowly fell off the top of a giant float we were standing on.

Gasping silently, I opened my mouth to scream, when I felt a light nudge in my side, and closed my eyes, waiting to feel the painful blow that I knew was coming.

**End Dream**

"Is she alive?" a strange male voice asked as I felt the nudging again.

Someone placed their hand on my forehead and I winced a little as I began to take notice of a massive headache, and let my eyes flutter open. "I'd say so."

"Huh?" I asked softly, looking around. Instead of my big pink bed on Lothor's ship, I was lying on the ground in the middle of a small forest with a blonde haired man with glasses and a brunette man wearing gloves. "Where am I?"

"The Timber woods." the blonde man answered simply. "You just appeared here in front of us, out of nowhere."

_Timber? Where or what is that?_ "Uh, ok?"

"The way she appeared, she could be the prophecied one. The princess?" the other guy suggested with wide hazel eyes.

"Ok, nice to know, but _who_ are you?" I asked, trying to place how I ended up here. Did Lothor just dump me here or something?

"Oh, please forgive us. My name's Billy and this is Bridge." the blonde introduced them.

"Um, hi. I'm Kapri." I said awkwardly, not being used to speaking with civility.

As they helped me up, they said something about taking me to the base and explaining the prophecy of the Forest Owl, a resistence group they are a part of. They said that there was a lot of danger on Gaia, whatever that was, so they gave me a strange crossbow, attaching it to my arm and teaching me how to use it.

Also, apparently, my evil space ninja outfit would cause a lot of attention, so when we made it back, they went over to a trunk and pulled out a way too familiar blue sweater with the long back, and black outfit for under it, with the addition to a darker blue corset type thing.

Raising my eyebrow at the outfit, and the crossbow, I took them hesitantly and headed back into a spare room.

_Talk about Deja Vu!_

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Ok, a lot of info, but my other chapters won't be nearly so bad. I just wanted to kick off this fic so people could check it out.

Hope you like it.

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"Shane... So we meet again"

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The above quote is likely NOT from who you think it is. LOL

R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	2. Balamb Garden

**Disclaimer** : I don't own PRNS or FF8 or the script I am following.

**Note** : Special thanks to **JuseaPeterson** for helping with the characters.

Merrick - General Caraway, Taylor - Fujin, Eric - Rajin, Xander - Nida

And for those who might be confused...the voice speaking in Kapri's dream in the last chapter, was NOT Blake. Blake was mentioned, but it wasn't him speaking. I just wanted to clear that up, because I realize it might have seemed confusing.

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(Balamb Garden)

(Normal POV)

Knocked back, a young man fell to the ground and shook his head to clear it. Short, dark, curly hair, with deep chocolate eyes glared at his opponent as he slowly stood back up, brushing off his black leather pants with his black leather gloved hands, before pulling down his red t-shirt and adjusting his black leather jacket with the white fur trim.

His opponent was about an inch shorter than himself, with short, spikey black hair, black eyes and asian features. He wore a long navy blue trench coat, with a black t-shirt on under it and black jeans.

_Blake. You think you're so tough, but I'll show you._ the curly haired man thought angrily as he raced forward and grabbed his gunblade out of the ground, spinning as he swung at the other man.

With a raise of his hand, Blake jumped back and smirked as he counterattacked, only to have the ring of metal on metal meet his ears and winced the tiniest bit. Pushing his blade back, he managed to knock his opponent away and aimed the blade at him before firing a round, which was deflected with a set of complicated moves.

Dodging the last shot, the curly haired young man, fixed the ring of a hawk on his hand before pushing a necklace of the same design out his fis face, and running forward with a tighter grip on his blade.

Suddenly, Blake raised his hand and a glowing orange orb formed at the end of it. It flew towards his opponent and knocked him down. As he tried to get up, Blake sneered once again and walked forward, raising his gunblade and slashing it fown, between the eyes of the other guy, cutting him deep enough to draw a lot of blood.

_You son of a-_ Getting back up, his opponent counterattacked too fast for Blake to dodge, and a low swing from the other gunblade imbedded itself between his eyes, leaving the exact same gash, but in a different direction.

That's when everything went black, and both boys collapsed.

(???'s POV)

When I finally woke up, the pounding in my head becoming too much for me to ignore, I had to fight to get my eyes open, and then let them fall closed with a pained grunt as bright light filtered in.

Raising a hand to my forehead, I felt the bandages there and frowned, remembering what happened. _That dirty bastard! We were supposed to _spar_ not try to really kill each other!_

Then a brief image from a dream hit me and my frown deeped. A woman with long blonde hair and blue eyes was pointing to the sky with a smile, staring right at me. Dressed in a short, red dress, she stood in the center of the Garden Dancefloor, where a lot of graduated SeeDs were dancing.

_Who was she?_ I questioned myself as a knock came to my door. Blinking absently, I remained quiet, like I always do and watched silently as Dr Shayla entered with a small frown.

"How are you feeling?" she asked carefully, examining my eyes with a light.

_Does she _have_ to do that?_ Staring at her, I shrugged. It wasn't that I was mute. I just didn't like to talk often. Still, from the look she was giving me, it was obvious she was expecting a verbal answer, so I sighed. "...ok."

That seemed to satisfy her and she nodded. "Take it easy next time, you hear?" she scolded lightly. "Looks like your eyes are focusing. Say your name for me."

Biting back the urge to roll me eyes, I sighed again and laid back down. "Shane."

Nodding again, she folded her arms over her chest. "Why don't you take it easy in training?" she asked with exasperation. "Next time you might not be so lucky."

"Tell that to Blake." I grumbled out loud, absently.

"That Blake..." she groaned, shaking her head. "Won't listen to anyone. Why don't you just ignore him?"

_As if it was really that easy, huh?_ "I can't just run away." I replied quietly.

"You wanna be cool, huh? Well just don't get hurt in the process." she said with a sigh, and I bit my lip to hide my frown.

_That's not it at all._

"Let's see, your instructor is..." She trailed off a moment before snapping her fingers. "Tori! I'll call her now. Just wait here a moment."

With that she left, and I relaxed a little, enjoying my peace while I could. Closing my eyes, I rested one of my gloved hands over my upper forehead, carefully avoiding the bandages, and zoned out. Despite the fact that she was in another room, I could still faintly hear her.

"Tori? Come get your student... Yes, yes... His injury's not serious. It'll probably leave a scar. ...Right, now please come by."

Everything went silent and I zoned out again. Senseing a presence though, I opened my eyes and stared at the roof a moment. _That couldn't be Tori already._

"Shane... So we meet again." came a soft feminine voice.

Turning my head, I noticed a woman in the next room, giving me a warm smile. She had shoulder length red hair and blue eyes, and wore a knee length crimson skirt with a light blue top and a red wrap over her shoulders. Waving to me quickly, she turned and left the room, and I frowned.

For some reason, my mind flashed back to a small girl, maybe 10 years old, but then it faded again.

The door opened, and I turned to find the long blonde hair of my instructor, Tori Hanson. Most of her hair was up in a clip, with a long lock framing each side of her face and she wore the traditional navy uniform.

Watching her, she rolled her eyes a little and took a deep breath before smiling. "I knew it'd either be you or Blake!" she said in a teasing tone as she stood at the door. "Come on, let's go. Today's the field exam." she ordered firmly.

Standing up, I followed her out of the infirmary and down a long corridoor that led to the main building of th Garden.

After a few moments of silence, Tori turned to me curiously. "Is something on your mind?"

"...Not really." I answered, a bit surprised when she repeated me at the exact same time and began laughing. Staring at her, I watched as she raised and shook her hand, still laughing. "What's so funny?" I demanded, not liking being laughed at.

"Funny?" Stopping her laughing, she wiped a tear from her eye before shaking her head. "No, no. It's not that. It's just, I'm so happy! I finally feel like I'm beginning to understand my student a little, that's all."

I frowned and walked past her. "I'm more complex than you think." I muttered quietly.

"Then tell me. Tell me more about yourself." she stated firmly, her eyes twinkling.

"It's none of your-"

"Business!" she finished before laughing again.

Raising my eyebrow, I turned and walked away, heading towards the entrance of the main building to take the elevator up to the second floor. Ignoring Tori's prods, I remained silent as we left the elevator and took the small hallway down to the main one and walked into class.

Blake was there, smirking and glaring at me with a bandaged forehead of his own, but for once, I ignored him as I walked past and went to my seat, logging into my computer to confirm the two GFs we were always given at this point.

GFs are summon creatures we can use in battle, known as Guardian Forces. Many are wild and must be beaten in battle to obtain their abilities, some are hidden and only the use of magical items can lead you to them, and some you need to steal from enemies in battle.

Making sure Quezacotl and Shiva were ready to go, I closed down my computer and relaxed for a bit.

Shiva, an ice elemental GF, with the ultimate attack of Diamond Dust. And Quezacotl, the Lightning GF, in the form of a Thunder Bird, with the ultimate attack of Thunder Storm.

Since part of the field Exam meant going to the fire cavern just beside Garden, Shiva would be my best bet, but I'd have to be careful, because she only lasts for one attack. I have to prepare myself for the cavern, if I'm going to get Ifrit.

"All right, class." Tori called out, silencing everyone as she stood. "Let's start with today's schedule. There seems to have been some rumors flying around about yesterday... Yes, the field exam for SeeD candidates will begin later this afternoon. Those not participating, and those who failed last week's written test, are to remain here in study hall. Field exam participants will have free time until the exam. Just make sure you're in top condition. Meet in the front hall at 1600 hours and I'll announce the team assigments from there. Any questions?"

She looked around and no one raised their hands, but her eyes landed on Blake who was acting too 'cool' to be in the class. "Oh, and Blake? Do _not_ injure your partner during practice. Be careful from now on." she scolded.

He turned and glared at me, but I refused to return the look. Slamming his hand down on the consol, he got up and left the room.

Keeping my gaze on my computer, I sighed. _It's not like he did it by accident. 'Be careful next time'? I doubt he's worried about it._

"Field exam participants, I'll see you all later, and Shane, I need to speak with you." she finished, coming around from behind her desk as most of the students left the room.

With a sigh, I took one last look at my console, prepping myself a little better.

_About Magic:_

_'Magic', when used by ordinary people and not sorceresses, is actually called 'para-magic'. In essence, it involves controlling eneries. The ability to use magic, without relying on 'draw points', takes many years to learn and master._

Rolling my eyes, I turned to the next tutorial.

_GF (Guardian Force):_

_A GF is an independant energy force. By combining it with 'para-magic', it is possible to control tremendous energy. Memory loss is a possible side effect, but this has not been proven as of yet._

_Sorceress:_

_Always a woman who has inherited the power of a sorceress, which has been passed down through generations, all the way back to the time of Hyne's rule._

_What is a SeeD?:_

_Balamb Garden's mercenaries. Commanding the GFs, they operate in small forces and are deployed all over the world. They're tasks range from providing military support to protecting civilians. SeeDs are paid according to rank._

Shaking my head, I turned off the console and stood up, making my way over to Tori, who was being watched by a bunch of her fanclub. As I passed by then, they just had to say something to me.

"You better show some courtesy to Intructor Hanson." the firls girl warned.

The only guy there, nodded. "It's an honor to be called over my Instructor Hanson."

"Try to smile a little when talking to Instructor Hanson." the second girl recommended with her own smile before walking off with the others.

Ignoring them, I waited as Tori walked over and smiled at me. "You haven't been to the fire cavern yet, have you? You won't be able to take part in today's SeeD exam if you don't pass the prerequiset."

Smacking my forehead lightly with my hand, I hissed in pain and looked away. ..._I was gonna go this morning, but Blake..._

"Well? Do you have a good excuse?"

I shook my head. "Not really."_ Might as well not even bother to deny it._

She nodded and stood straight. "Well, then let's get going. I'll be waiting by the front gate when you're ready to go." Turning, she left the room, and I followed after her, ignoring the stares of the fanclub in the hallwy as I passed.

Heading straight towards the eleavtor, I stopped when I heard a voice.

"I'm late, I'm late, I'm LATE!!!"

Frowning, I looked up at the sound, just as a young woman with long brown hair ran down the hallway and bumped right into me, with such force, I staggered back a bit and she fell back on her butt. I managed to get my balance back, and looked at her as she rubbed her head and pouted before standing.

"Waah!" she whined before seeing me and smiling brightly.

Sighing, I decided to be nice, for once. "You all right?" I asked gruffly, wishing to just go to the fire cavern and get it over with.

Brushing off the short skirt of her student uniform, she nodded. "There!" Giggling nervously, she put her hands on her hips. "I'm fine. I'm sorry, I was kinda in a hurry." she apologized, her sincerity showing clearly in her light blue eyes. "Oh yeah! Hey, did you just come from that class?" she asked, pointing to the room I'd just exited. I nodded and her face fell. "Is...registration over?" she asked hesitantly.

I nodded silently, folding my arms over my chest.

"Woo...oh, noooo..." she whined again, stamping her feet. "This place is soo much bigger than my last Garden! Oh, hey, hey! I just transferred here. Do you think you could give me a quick tour of this Garden?" she pleaded, giving me the puppydog eyes.

Sighing, I closed my eyes and counted to ten before opening them again. "Sure." I said reluctantly, watching as her face broke out into a huge grin again.

"Woo-hoo! Alrighty. Let's go!"

Rolling my eyes, I passed by her and headed for the elevator. "We'll take the lift to the 1F lobby and I'll show you the Directory."

Taking the elevator down, we walked down the small flight of stairs, to an electronic directory in the main hall, and I began to explain. "This is the Directory. Balamb Garden is pretty big. It's a good idea to check where you want to go, and select it here."

"I have a question." the girls said thoughtfully. When I nodded to her, she turned back to the screen. "How do you use this?"

"Just press one of the locations with your hand to bring up information. I'll give a quick explanation of the various facilities." _Why did I agree to this again?_

"Yes sir!" she giggled with a salute and I rolled my eyes at her.

"You'll find the Dormitory to the north." I said, pointing to it. "The majority of the students live in the dorms. You won't find too many that commute."

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm in the dorms, too!"

"You can rest and change in there. West of the North Block, is the Cafeteria. There's always a big rush for the hot dogs. You better get used to waiting in line."

The girl pouted but nodded. "Got it."

"East of the North Block is the Car Park. We usually take the Garden car when a mission comes up." _Next._ "The Front Gate is located to the south of us, now." Feeling my eyes narrow, I frowned. _That's right... I'm supposed to meet Instructor Hanson at the front gate._ I remembered.

"Hm? Is something wrong?" the girl asked cluelessly.

"Nothing..." I said, closing up again before sighing. "Next we have the Quad, located in the West Block. There's a big event being planned there..."

"I know! I know!" she interrupted cheerfully, and I raised an eyebrow at her. "It's the Garden Festival! It's going to be great! I'm going to be on the commitee! You wanna help out, too?!" she asked with wide eyes.

Turning away from her, I ignored her. "Let's continue. South of the West Block is the Infirmary. This is where you get treated for your injuries, but a lot of students come here for advice."

"What's the doctor's name?"

"Dr. Shayla. Now the East Block. This is the Training Center. It's the only facility open all night. It's used for training..." _Obviously._ "And they have real monsters running lose there." Turning to her, I gave her a dead serious look. "If you don't take it seriously, you may end up dead. Just be careful."

Her eyes widened and her face paled as she nodded slowly and swallowed heavily. "Um...ok..." she said meekly.

I was beginning to get bored of this, but forged on. "South of the East Block is the Library. There's a lot of material you can look up there, but the terminals in the classroom are a lot more efficient. And you already know about the classroom on 2F, right?"

She nodded. "Yep, I remember that one."

"By the way, the Headmaster's office is on 3F but you need permission to enter."

Frowning a little at this, she nodded again. "Question. What's the Headmaster's name?"

"Headmaster Kanoi." Looking through the directory, I nodded. "That's about it? Anything else?"

"Got it." she said cheerily. "Hey...um, are you taking today's SeeD exam?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

"Then maybe I'll see you there." she jumped a little, excited. "I already finished my training at my previous Garden. I'm taking the exam today, too! Good luck to us both, huh? Thanks a lot!"

Turning, she made her way to the elevator and I sighed as I went to my dorm room. Reaching into my gunblade case, I grabbed my sword and strapped it to one of my three belts hanging from my waist, as I strapped some extra ammunition rounds to the red belt, and tied my item pouch to my last belt.

Looking around my tiny room, I left again and headed to the front gate, not at all surprised to find Tori already standing there, waiting.

She was dressed in tight, blue pants and a light blue and white, wave patterned halter with elbow length black bloves, black boots and a chain whip wrapped around her waist.

"Before we go, remember that we can use a technique to draw magic from most enemies. It'll come in handy if we can find and draw ice magic from a monster." she reminded me.

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Ok, there's chapter 2. You might notice that Kapri won't be mentioned or seen (other than a short appearance) for a while, but be assured, this IS a Shane/Kapri fic.

Hope you like it.

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"To obtain a low-level GF, a SeeD member must support. Are you ready?

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R+R please.

Thank you everyone.

Tenshi


	3. Prepping for the Dollet Mission

**Disclaimer** : I don't own PRNS or FF8 or the script I am following.

**Note** : I also forgot to mention in the previous chapter, that 'princess' will be explained, but I'm not talking royalty. LOL There's a lot of explanation in the scripts too, so I'm sorry if someone has a long dialog, and it bores some.

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(Outside the Garden)

Leaving the Garden, we wandered a ways over to the mountains at the edge of the island. Balamb is just a small island with the Garden, a small down, and the Fire Cavern. At the mountains, we knew our best bet for finding Blizzard magic would be here, where the ice elemental monsters would be found.

It didn't take long before we encountered a couple of ice monsters. Their looks were pretty much indescribable, to say the least, but they weren't very strong. Keeping my blade on my belt, I closed my eyes and focused on their magics.

Finding the light blue thread that identified the Blizzard spells, I focused on drawing them, and managed to grab the power. It was just a weak spell, but ice magic none the less.

Tori followed my example and managed to draw some spells of her own before we attacked. Up first, Tori grabbed her whips and snapped it hard on the ground before spinning and lashing out at the monster, taking one down right away.

I quicky attacked after her, using my blade to bring the other down with one swipe.

Next, we walked around the plains, drawing wind and healing spells from giant mosquitos called Bite Bugs, and giant caterpillars called Caterchipillars. We avoided the forests, knowing about the T-Rexaurs and that we wouldn't stand a chance against them yet, and even went to the beach, where we stocked up on water and blind spells from sand sharks.

Lastly, we headed to the Fire Cavern so that I could get the GF there. That was the test. Set a time limit, make it through the Cavern and get the GF before the time limit was up. The shorter the time limit, the better your results, but I didn't want to be overconfident.

Blocking the entrance were two Garden Faculty members. When they saw us approach, they stood straight and waited for us to stop in front of them. "To obtain a low-level GF, a SeeD member must support. Are you ready?"

I nodded and stood straight, saluting them. "I'm ready." I said firmly.

"I'm his support." Tori stated, saluting beside me. "Instructor number 14, Tori Hanson."

"Select a time limit suited to your abilities. Challenging yet reasonable."

Raising an eyebrow, I decided to play it safe. The choices were, 10min, 20min, 30min, and 40min. I chose 20min.

"Very well. Good luck." the first faculty member bowed before they stepped aside and Tori and I entered the Cavern.

Already, I was sweating as I strapped the timer watch to my wrist. Looking at it, it said 19:20, meaning we hadn't been in here even a minute yet. That just goes to show you how hot it was.

Fire Cavern. Aptly named. It consisted of a narrow pathway, just wide enough to fight battles on, surrounded on one side by thick, hot, rock walls, and the other side was a bubbling lava river.

Beginning our walk along the path, we battled various monsters. Giant bats called Buels, and smaller, more viscous bats called Red Bats. We managed to steal more healing spells, fire spells and silence spells from them.

"My job is to support you in battle." Tori said as we walked up to a magic draw point. "The rest is up to you."

"Fine." I said tersely, drawing Esuna from the point.

So far, we had ice, fire, and wind magic, as well as low level Cure spells, Blind and Silence, and now Esuna.

The ice was Blizzard, low level spells which would still pack a punch against weaker fire monsters. Fire was just that, Fire, and though it was a low level spell, again it would pack a punch against weaker ice monsters, and Wind was known as Aero. It causes a small tornado to hit the monsters, working best against flying types, to knock them off balance and weaken them.

The other spells were just what they were called, except for Esuna which would heal any status magics cast on our party, like Blind, Silence, Poison, Confuse, and more.

Walking farther up the path, I was thankful for the silence, but apparently, Tori didn't care much for it and began speaking again.

"You know, the boys often choke on this test when I come with them. I guess my charm makes them nervous." she joked.

Raising an eyebrow, I gave her an unimpressed look. _If they were part of your fanclub, I wouldn't be surprised._ Turning away, I kept moving and she sighed.

"I'm just kidding! I'm just trying to keep you relaxed, that's all." she insisted with a grin.

Suddenly, we were ambushed by a large, living ball of fire, and jumped to the sides to avoid it. Still, I wasn't quite quick enough and suffered a burn to my arm, which I used a Cure to heal.

"Bomb... An elemental monster. Use an ice attack for these." Tori instructed calmly as she grabbed her whip.

Nodding, I put away my gunblade and concentrated on a Blizzard spell as I raised me hand, my palm facing the monster. Unleashing the spell, I watched as a giant chunk of ice pierced through the Bomb's body and killed it instantly.

Tori looked at me with a clearly impressed look as we continued on silently, soon making it to the Fire Pit at the back, with 11min left to spare. Not bad in my opinion.

"I guess I was right." Tori mused to herself. "You and Blake are in a class of your own. You both have amazing strength and potential."

_Only Blake likes to use his strength to boss prople around._ I thought darkly. I wouldn't admit it, but her praise meant a lot to me.

"Ok, this is it. Ready?"

I nodded and drew my blade.

She grinned and grabbed her whip. "You seem confident enough."

There was a loud roar, and the ground shook as a giant monster shot out of a lava pit and flew up into the air, landing in front of us before roaring loudly. This was the GF we were after, Ifrit, the fire Guardian.

Beginning the attack, I ran forward and sliced Ifrit with my blade, running back as Tori lashed out with her whip, followed quickly by a Blizzard.

"Impudent humans!" Ifrit growled as he lashed out and ast a fire spell on us both.

I staggered back, winded and feeling a little dizzy from the attack before shaking my head and casting my own Blizzard spell.

Tori gasped as she was struck and fell to her knees before getting back up and staring at the GF. "We might need a little help." she said with a raised eyebrow.

Taking the hint, I closed my eyes and concentrated on my GFs, chosing Shiva and summoning her.

The ground froze over as an icy wind blew by, and a woman appeared out of nowhere. She had long bue and green hair, and wore an ice bikini over her body. Raising her hand, a light blue mist formed at her finger tips, blowing large, sharp chunks of ice out and hitting Ifrit, who fell back from the blast.

Once she was done, Shiva disappeared again and we moved forward, ready to continue the battle.

"They have Shiva?!" Ifrit roared incredulously as he stood back up. Shooting a ball of fire at me, I wasn't able to dodge and was knocked into a nearby pillar, sitting there as I tried to fight the dizziness.

A warmth ran through me, and I focused my eyes, noticing that Tori cast a Cure on me before counterattacking with her whip and then a Blizzard spell. Chancing a quick glance that the watch on my wrist, I noticed I had 2 min left and frowned. _Time to end this._

Standing up, I ran forard and slashed Ifrit multiple times with my blade before jumping back and hitting him with a Blizzard.

He fell to the ground and glared at us, as he couldn't get back up again. "Hmm, not bad for a human." he reluctantly admitted. "For me to lose to a human... Very well. I shall join you." He dissipated into mist and entered my body, and I shook my head as I sighed in relief.

(Balamb Garden)

Heading back to the Garden, Tori and I split up and I went to the dorm to change into my student uniform. Basically it was navy blue and consisted of pants and a long sleeved shirt with a white tie and white trim around the collar and arm cuffs. I didn't care for it, but it was a necessity at the exam.

Once I was done, I made my way back to the front lobby where Tori stood with Blake and his 'groupies' the other members of the 'Disciplinary Squad'. Pretty much, it was just a group of three that liked to throw their strength around, 'arresting' students for any tiny thing, like running in the halls and such.

The group consisted of Blake, the leader, Taylor, a usually silent blonde woman that when she _did_ actually speak, she yelled, and Eric, a pretty muscleheaded guy. Not bad, but not the smartest. He usually got beaten up by Taylor if he didn't watch what he said.

"Shane, over here!" Tori called, waving slightly as she held a clipboard to her chest. She too, was dressed in her SeeD uniform. Once I approached, she nodded. "I'll be announcing the squad assignments for the exam now." Looking at her clipboard, she bit her lip. "Let's see... You'll be with... Dustin Brooks." She raised an eyebrow. "Quite a...lively fellow."

"Lively? He's just loud." I groaned, shaking my head. "Can't I switch squads?"

She laughed a little and shook her head. "I'm afraid that's not possible." Looking around, she spotted a brunette jumping around and practicing his martial arts in the hallway. He had curly black hair, fair skin and drown eyes, and was also wearing a student uniform. "Over here, Dustin!" she called.

Looking over at us, he grinned and did several backflips before waving at us and walking over. Looking at me, his jaw dropped and his eyes widened. "Woah! I'm with you?!" he cried with an awed grin. Rubbing his hand on his pants, he held it forward for me to shake.

_Unfortunately for me._ I thought darkly, refusing to shake his hand and watching silently as he retracted it.

"You don't get along with Blake, do you?" he asked curiously.

_Does anyone?_ I thought, noticing that he'd moved off to the side and was talking to his friends. It was obvious he couldn't hear us, or of course, he'd have to add his two cents.

"Heard he whooped you pretty good this morning." he continued.

_'Cause he cheated._ "We weren't fighting. We were training."

Dustin grinned and shrugged. "Bet you he doesn't think so."

Rolling my eyes, I had to agree. Blake liked to use any chance he got to try and prove he was better than me. Why? I don't know, but it's been like that for as long as I could remember.

"Look, Blake's just being a pain in the ass. All you have to do, is ignore him."

_Why does everyone keep saying that??_ "It's none of your business." I stated coldly, frowning when I heard Tori saying the exact same thing in sync with me and sighing.

"Ahem..." She cleared her throat and gave us both a slight warning look. "Excuse me, but... That Blake you're talking about... He's your squad leader."

_You've GOT to be kidding me!_

"SAY WHAT?" Dustin yelled, raising his hands and staring at her in shock.

"It can't be changed." she repeated herself from earlier, shrugging a little. Looking around, she seemed to frown when she noticed Blake was out of sight. "Blake, are you here?" she called, jumping a little when he appeared from the other side of the directory with a mock pleasant look on his face.

Of course, Taylor and Eric were still with him. _They're there as usual. Guess that makes up the whole Disciplinary Commitee._

"You're squad leader. Good luck to you." she said with a raised eyebrow.

Raising his hands, Blake shook his head and grinned. "Instructor... I hate it when people wish me luck. Save those words for a bad student that needs them."

Her eyebrow raised even further and she nodded seriously. "Ok then." Smirking, she turned her face more towards him and nodded her head again. "Good luck, Blake."

Frowning, he gestured in Eric's direction blindly, glaring at her. "Add Instructor Hanson to the list." he instructed flippiantly.

_The list?_ Raising my own eyebrow, I regarded him quietly. _What's that?_

Ignoring him, Tori turned to the rest of us to finish our instructions. "Well then... You're all assigned to squad B. I'll be the instructor in charge. Teamwork is of the utmost importance. Let's get through this exam everyone!"

Rolling his eyes, Blake held up a hand and turned to us. "Alright, listen up! Teamwork means staying out of my way. It's the squad B rule, got it?"

Glaring at him, Dustin raised a fist and was about to attack him when a new voice cut in, stopping him cold.

"Everyone here?"

We all turned to find Headmaster Kanoi walking down the stairs from the elevator, one of the Garden faculty following him as usual. Walking over to us, he smiled pleasantly and nodded. Kanoi was an older man who could rarely be strict, but otherwise was very kind to everyone.

"It's been a while, everyone. How's everyone doing?" he asked pleasantly. "This exam will involve 12 members from Squads A through D. You will be proceeding to a real battlefield, obviously, the battles are real. Life and death, victory and defeat, honor and disgrace... Each of these go hand in hand. There's only one way or the other. How about it? Still up for it?"

I noticed Dustin frown thoughtfully before nodding and Blake rolling his eyes. Taylor and Eric were silent but like Blake, obviously were disregarding Headmaster Kanoi's words. Tori on the other hand, was listening carefully.

"You will be accompanied by 9 SeeD members. Should you fail, these members will get the job done. They always do."

Tori seemed a little nervous at the praise he was bestowing upon her as well as the other members, but he continued anyways.

"Well, that's one less worry on your mind."

_So you think._ I was willing to bet that for some, the worry actually grew.

"The pride of Balamb Garden, the elite mercenary force, SeeD! Learn from them. Obey their commands and accomplish the mission! Prove yourselves worthy of becoming a part of SeeD. Best of luck." Bowing his head, he signaled that we were dismissed and Blake, Taylor, Eric and Dustin headed to the Car Park to board the Garden car to Balamb.

"Let's get a move on!" Tori called to me, indicating for me to follow the others.

Kanoi seemed to regard me for a moment, smiling kindly. "We've yet to have a gunblade specialist in SeeD."

It wasn't surprising. Gunblades could be very tricky to wield expertly, and many couldn't use them. Those that could were few and far between. So far, other than me, Blake was the only person I knew who could use a gunblade with any real talent. And something told me that with his attitude, he wasn't going to pass this exam.

"That is why I am hoping you and Blake will join us. Now go."

Nodding my head, I turned and made my way to the Car Park, boarding the car a moment before Tori. Sitting at the back, I was stuck sitting beside Dustin who decided to spend the trip driving me nuts.

"Yo Shane. Show me your gunblade, will ya?" he asked excitedly as the car pulled out of the Garden.

I remained silent and spared a brief glance at him before looking at the ground, loosing myself in thought.

_That girl... The one in the infirmary. She called my name. She said "So we meet again.", but I don't remember her. Something about her..._

"C'mon man!" Dustin pleaded.

_She seemed somehow...familiar. Did we meet before?_

"Just a peek!"

_We must have if we were meeting 'again'. So...who was she?_

"Tch, fine... Yeah, yeah. Why you being so selfish?! Scrooge." he grumbled, finally snapping me out of my thoughts. "Say something, will ya?! W-What's on your mind?"

"...Nothing." I said quietly, giving in to his pleads. God, this guy could be annoying!

"...Nothing." Tori echoed me before giggling quietly and shaking her head.

Shaking his head, Dustin got up from his seat and balanced himself before beginning a volley of punches to the air, battling an invisible foe.

It seemed that, that was all it took to make Blake speak up, giving orders and insulting people...as usual. "Stop that...it's annoying... Chicken."

Glaring at him, Dustin stopped but raised a fist menacingly. "WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!"

Tori shot up from her seat and glared at them both. "Knock it off!" she ordered sternly, watching as Blake turned away with boredom and Dustin sat back down.

_Who was she?_

"...Instructor... Who was that girl in the infirmary this morning?" I asked, my curiosity getting the best of me.

She frowned thoughtfully as she tried to remember. "Was there a girl there? I didn't notice anyone. Why? Is there a problem?"

I shook my head, already feeling stupid for asking. "No. Nothing."

"This is great." Blake groaned sarcastically. "I have a Chucken Wuss and a guy that just reached puberty on my team."

Shaking my head, I remained silent as Dustin began yelling at Blake, who only laughed, until Tori got up again and ordered them to shut the hell up. _I knew I shouldn't have said anything._ I thought to myself.

It didn't take long before the car reached Balamb docks and we exited, making our way to the boat we'd be taking. I already knew that Headmaster's son, Cam, would be on board to brief us. Cam was also a SeeD.

"So that's the vessel?" I questioned myself as the others boarded.

"Ain't no turning back now." Blake said from beside me. Raising an eyebrow, he turned to me. "What? You scared, too?" Hearing that we were being called, he smirked. "Better not disappoint me." he said lightly as he walked towards the boat.

I knew the challenge and walked towards the boat as well, climbing on board and sitting, once again, beside Dustin. I guess Tori knew better than to sit him beside Blake. Good move on her part. At least he and I could tolerate each other...for a while. He just yaps at me and I just tone him out.

Pretty simple.

Cam nodded and smiled politely at us. "Hi, Tori." he greeted warmly.

"Well, these are the members of squad B." our instructor said reluctantly.

"Nice to meet ya." Dusti nsaid as he shook Cam's hand.

I also shook his hand. "Pleased to meet you." I stated in my indifferent tone.

Turning to Blake, Cam sighed. "Blake. How many times is this?"

Rolling his eyes, he sighed. "Oh, I just _love_ these exams." he said sarcastically as he reclined in a seat.

Sighing, Cam shook his head. "I'll explain the mission. Be seated!" he ordered as we all sat down. "Our client for this mission is the Dollet Dukedom Parliament. A request for SeeD was made 18 hours ago. Dollet has been under attack by the G-army since about 72 hours go."

G-army stood for Galbadian army. They were often making trouble for people, attacking neutral villages and taking on the strangest missions. No one knew what they were up to, but it was clear they would attack innocent people just to accomplish their missions.

"Our mission is to eliminate the remaining G-army troops in Dollet city and liberate it A.S.A.P. Afterwards, SeeD members will intercept remaining G-army forces if they try to enter the city."

Rolling his eyes, Blake turned towards Cam. "So what are _we_ supposed to do?"

"SeeD candidates are to eliminate the G-army inside the city." Tori informed us.

Dustin puffed up with pride. "Sounds important."

"Sounds boring." Blake returned with a sigh. "So what you're saying is, we do all the dirty work..."

Cam spared him a dirty look for that. "... Oh, it hardly needs to be said, but... The order to withdraw takes priority. Do not forget." Checking a map he held, he nodded as he checked his watch. "We're almost there. We anticipate battle as soon as we land. Be prepared. That's all. Any questions, speak to Tori." he said as he left the cabin.

"Well then, Shane..." Blake turned to me with a smirk. "Go see what's going on outside."

Raising my eyebrow, I figured it would be a good chance to get away from then, so I nodded and stood up. "...Ok."

Sneering, Blake chuckled. "Good, because it's _my_ order."

_Yeah, yeah._ Walking up to the small deck, I took a map of Dollet docks with me and frowned as I stood alone, the breeze ruffling my hair a little.

Holding up the map, I looked at it closely, before lowering it and seeing the difference in the approaching landscape. Themap was of a calm looking city dock, but the real thing... You could see pillars of fire, and hear the explosions and screams.

Narrowing my eyes, I shook my head slowly. _What are they up to?_

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Hope you like it.

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"Hey! All you Galbadian cowards out there! Come out 'n show your faces! Don't leave me hangin' now!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	4. Too Close, the Dollet Mission

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything. If I did, do you really think I'd be writing _fanfictions_?

**Note** : Just a note, but this game is broken up into 4 discs, so I'm working on disc one right now. Kapri will be introduced very soon, but then will disappear for a brief bit.

Taylor - Fujin, Eric - Rajin, Toxica - Biggs, Jindrax - Wedge, Marah - Selphie (I think I already mentioned that)

And just so you know, chocobos have existed in Final Fantasy for as long as I can remember. No matter what the world, what time frame, and if it's in no way related to another world, you'll find chocobos. They're as resilient as cockroaches. LOL.

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(Dollet)

Heading back down, I joined the others as we prepared to disembark. A moment later, and the ship shuddered, showing it had landed, and the ramp in the back opened, allowing us to rush out.

Cam turned to Tori and saluted before running off and Tori turned to us seriously. "Ok, you are to secure the Central Square!" she ordered before climbing a ladder to a large gatling gun on the ship and situating herself.

That left Blake, Dustin and I as the scout party.

"Let's move out!" Blake called before running ahead, and Dustin shrugged to me before we followed him.

Rushing up a flight of stairs, we made our way to the entrance of the city, bypassing another trio of SeeD candidates. That's when we were ambushed by three soldiers. They were dressed in mavy blue suits with black battle armor and helmets, carrying rifles.

Galbadian troops.

"These are the Dollet reinforcements?" one asked incredulously.

Pulling out my gunblade, I took up a defensive stand, Blake on one side of me, and Dustin on the other. Blake, too, armed himself, but I guess not surprisingly, Dustin's weapons were the metal lined gauntlets he wore.

He was the first one to attack, racing forward to level a volley of punches at a guard's face, before kicking him in the side of the head. Then Blake raced forward and slashed the same guard in the gut, bringing him down.

I attacked last, taking on the second guard, and bringing him down with three slashes of my blade before I fired a few shots at the third guard. Then, Dustin raced forward and kicked him in the gut before doing a backflip and kicing him in the head.

Once the last guard fell, we headed into the city, following Blake's overly excited lead.

_Damn him!_

He was _calling_ the soldiers to us! Taunting them and causing us to run into many battles. At the end of the third one, we had to take a moment to heal up with Cure spells and potions, and Blake was _still_ grinning!

Catching up to him under a bridge on the main street, he pointed up and raised an eyebrow, and a moment later, two soldiers jumped down from above.

I shook my head as I attacked the first one. _Show off._

Dustin and Blake took out the second and I took out the first with a fire spell after using my gunblade on him.

Another battle over with, we continued on.

"The Central Square's up ahead." Blake informed us with a disappointed frown. Raising his gunblade to the sky, he shouted to anyone that could hear him. "Hey! All you Galbadian cowards out there! Come out 'n show your faces! Don't leave me hangin' now!" Then, he ran off towards the Square.

Dustin shook his head. "...What an idiot." he muttered before beginning a jog to catch up to him.

We encountered two more battles before finally having a chance to relax a moment. I checked arouns the Central Square a little more before letting out a silent sigh and walking over to Blake and Dustin. "I think that's all of them." I said simply.

"Well then, we're on standy 'till the enemy comes..." Blake groaned and folded his arms over his chest. "Standby. How boring."

Suddenly, I heard the sounds of fighting around us, increase, and I narrowed my eyes, staying alert for signs of danger. "Sounds like it's starting."

Blake shrugged. "Bring it on." he grinned. A dog came over and pawed at his leg before it began to gnaw on the edge of his jacket and he frowned, using his leg to push it away. "Get outta here!" he growled, shooing the dog with his hand. "Scram!"

Moving to the side, he raised his gunblade to the sky, ignoring Dustin who was glaring at him from the corner of a building he was leaning against. "Hey! Galbadian soldiers! What're you waiting for?! Come show me what you got!" he called.

Looking around, I frowned in suspicion when I noticed no soliders running in our direction. "...Nothing." I said quietly, to myself. _This isn't right. There should be _some_ soldiers rushing at us..._

"That's it!" Blake yelled angrily. "I can't take this anymore! What is this, some kind of dog training?!"

The dog that had been following him around, moved to the other side of the Square and began to howl. Taking the warning sign, the three of us ducked down behind the edge of the building and watched silently as six soldiers ran through, heading down another path, one of them carrying a small box. Once they were out of sight, we moved out of hiding.

"It's the enemy..." I said quietly.

Dustin frowned and nodded. "Where the hell they goin'?"

Looking over at a large mountain a little ways away, I noticed a large tower on it and frowned.

"What's that up there?" Dustin asked.

"Our next destination." Blake said with a grin as he put his gunblade away.

"But..." Dustin spluttered as he looked between Blake, and me who remained silent. "But that's against orders!" Turning to me, he shot me a begging look. "Shane!"

"I'll follow the captain's orders." I said simply with a shrug. _Either way, I have a feeling we're going up there._

"...Captain's orders?" Blake repeated with a raised eyebrow. "You want to wreak some havoc too, don't you?"

I shrugged. _Not really, but orders are orders._ _Besides..._ "It's a good opportunity to test out my training." Turning to Blake, I regarded him for a moment. "Thanks to you, I feel like I can take on anyone. Even if they do fight dirty like you."

He grinned and shook his head. "You'll thank me when the day comes."

I bit back the urge to roll my eyes as I stared at him emotionlessly. _Are we actually having a civilized conversation?_

Apparently, Dustin noticed it, too. "What the hell...? I thought you guys didn't get along. You're like, all buddy-buddy now. Listen. This ain't no ordinary battle. It's an exam, an important one. I'm telling ya, we have to stick to orders." he pleaded.

Blake shot him a dirty look. "Then you stay here. I don't need any boy scouts."

"What was that?!"

I sighed and turned to Dustin. "Don't take him seriously, Dustin." Turning to Blake I shrugged. "If we're gonna go, let's go already."

He nodded back. "The enemy's heading for that facility. We, Squad B, are to secure the Summit. Move out!"

"Alright." I agreed.

Dustin sighed and shook his head. "Tch...fine."

(Dollet Mountain Hideout)

Running along the back street, we were soon let out on a brick path that led up the mountain. It wound around many trees and fallen Dollet soldiers, and we stopped to speak to a few on our way, hoping for some useful information.

The first wounded soldier we fround, was laying against a large stone slab and panting. "What business do they have with the Communication Tower, now?"

A second soldier was lying on his back on the ground, bleeding badly from a wound, but it didn't seem fatal. "...As a child...I used to...play at this Communication Tower... It was already closed down then...and... Ugh, I was careless."

Heading up the stone steps, we made it halfway to the next portion of the path when a rustling sound came from the bushes to our left and we armed ourselves quickly, only to find ourselves face-to-face with a wounded soldier crawling out of them.

Seeing us, he gasped and crouched back a bit, shaking in fear. "W-Who are you?" he stuttered.

"Don't worry. We're SeeD candidates. We've been dispatched by Garden." I said quietly, lowering my sword and watching as he fell onto the path, panting in relief.

"So what's gonig on up there?" Blake asked curiously, lowering his weapon as well.

"The Galbadian Soldiers have entered the Communication Tower. On top of that, the place has always been a breeding ground for monsters. If you guys are goin; up, be caref-Ahhhh!" his last statement turned into a terrified scream as a loud hiss was heard from the bushes and something wrapped around his ankle, trying to drag him back into them. "HELP!" he screamed.

Rushing forward, I stooped and grabbed his arm, using my gunblade to slice whatever was holding him, letting him go free. Moving him safely to the side, I watched as a giant snake and a large lizard slithered out, glaring fiercely at us for interrupting their meal.

Arming ourselves again, we got ready for battle. The snake, or Anacondaur, was a stronger monster, so we focused on the lizard, the Geezard, first. Dustin ran forward, punching and kicking it, and knocking it on it's back, where Blake slashed it across the stomach, killing it.

I charged forward and cast a quick Fire before slashing with my blade and jumping back. Feeling a burst of energy, I unleashed my ultimate attack, Renzokuken. I ran forward again and sliced viscously at the snake several times, before jumping back and raising my hands over my head, holding my gunblade standing straight up. I large beam of energy came from my blade and shot into the sky before coming back down, and I held an empowered blade. Swinging it over my head in a vertical arc, I watched as the wave of energy sliced the snake in half, sending each half falling in a different direction.

My ultimate attacks sometimes had different forms, and this was just one of them.

Once that was done, I sighed and sheathed my blade. "Monsters, huh?"

"More fun for us." Blake said easily. "Come on." Racing off, Dustin and I exchanged raised eyebrows.

"Fun?" Dustin asked incredulously. "Pu-lease!"

Making it to the top of the mountain, we noticed an opening in the brush that would allow us to look out over the entrance to the Communications Tower that two soldiers stood outside of. I laid down as flat to the ground as I could, Dustin crouching on one side of me, and Blake laying on the other side of him, and we watched quietly, as one of the soldiers worked on a control panel, and the other worked on some thick cables lying on the ground.

That's when a third soldier came out and saluted to the other two before bringing out a clipboard.

"The generator is up and running!" the third soldier said.

The first one nodded. "No problem with the boosters!"

"...The hell they doing?" Blake asked quietly, frowning at what he was seeing.

"Cable disconnection confirmed!" The second soldier replied to the others. "Beginning exchange process!"

"...Repairs?" I questioned quietly as the three soldiers entered the Comm Tower and we stood up.

"Who cares?" Blake snorted. Turning to me, he grinned. "This must be your first real battle. You scared?"

I shrugged. "...I don't know. I try not to think about it."

He shook his head in response. "I love battles." he sighed almost dreamily. "I fear nothing. They way I look at it, as long as you make it out of the battle alive, you're one step closer to fulfilling your dreams."

"What?" I questioned as I made a face. _Blake's following a dream? I don't understand._

"You have one too, don't you?" he asked with confusion.

Shrugging, I shook my head. _Haven't had a dream for a long time. _"Sorry, but I'm gonna pass on that subject."

"Yo!" Dustin cut in, finally having enough of being ignored. "Let me in on it, too!"

Blake shook his head. "Mind your own business." he sneered.

"Fricken hell!" Dustin yelled, beginning a series of punches around Blake's face, as if trying to intimidate him.

"What's the matter, Dustin? Swatting flies?" he asked mock innocently before walking off towards the path to the Comm Tower.

"Damn you...!"

"There you are!"

Spinning a little in surprise, I noticed the same girl I gave a tour to, before, standing on top of a hill, waving at us below her. She took a shaky step down to a lower ledge, but slipped and fell, flipping and rolling down the hill until she landed on her knees in front of us. Rubbing her head, she pouted before getting up and brushing off the short skirt of her uniform and sticking her tongue out and winking at us.

"Are you...Squad B?" she asked hesitantly as she rubbed at the back of her head a little more.

I nodded and her eyes lit up as she looked at me closely.

"Wait a minute... You're the guy who showed me around, before. Thanks! I don't get so lost anymore." she said cheerily. "Oh yeah, I haven't told you my name, yet. I'm a messenger from Squad A. Name's Marah." Looking around, she frowned when noticed that it was only the two of us, besides her. "Squad leader's Blake, right? Uhh...where is he?"

Looking down to the front of the Comm Tower, I pointed as Blake ran into view, waving at us from below.

"One of these days, I'm gonna tell you about my _romantic_ dream!" he called before disappearing inside.

Sighing, Marah took a step towards the edge of the cliff and looked down. "This sure is tough." she whined before jumping off the edge and sliding down it, this time, landing on her ass. Standing up, she turned towards the Tower. "Captain! Wait up!!" she called. Then she turned back to us. "What're you waiting for? Come on!! Come on!!!"

Looking at me nervously, Dustin offered a weak chuckle. "Shane, you're not gonna... It's a cliff, man..." he weakly protested.

_No duh. I kinda noticed that._ "No way." _I like my bones they way they are, thank you._

Running around the path to the tower, we soon caught up to Marah who was giving us an impatient look. "What took you so long? It would've been quicker if you'd jumped."

"Jumped? Pu-lease..." Dustin snorted, shaking his head. "You won't normally jump off a cliff, ok?! Ain't that right, Shane?"

Looking at the cliff thoughtfully, I decided to bug Dustin and shrugged. "...I don't know about that. Maybe everyone but the Chicken Wuss can do it."

"WHAT DID YOU SAYYY?!?!" he screamed, getting red in the face.

Looking at him seriously, Marah nodded. "Hmmm... Since you're getting so angry, I'm guessing you're the Chicken Wuss."

"What the...!!!" Dustin looked at us both with wide eyes, his head almost steaming by now. "Why is everyone... I AM NOT A CHICKEN!!"

"Well..." Marah seemed to think about it. "If you're not a Chicken, then how about...a PIG!" Then she shook her head. "Oh, but you look more like a Chicken anyways."

Shaking his fist, Dustin took a deep breath and closed his eyes, relaxing. "Chicken, pig, whatever." he said indifferently. "Call me what you want!" he yelled, glaring at us. "I don't care anymore!!"

_And yet, your yelling says differently._ "Don't take it personally, Dustin." I said with a wave of my hand.

He turned towards the Comm Tower. "Tch..."

Having enough of this, Marah moved to the door and turned back to us. "Since he left you guys alone, I'll join your group. Well, let's get goin'." she said, walking to our sides.

"So... This is the Communications Tower..." Dustin said thoughtfully as he looked up to the top of it.

Marah nodded. "Sure is big."

"Ahh...AHHHH!"

Looking back down at the door, we watched silently as Blake chased out two soldiers and watched as they ran away.

"H-Hey!" Marah called, but Blake ignored her and walked back inside. Turning to us, she stomped her foot and pouted. "The captain's getting away!"

We headed inside and watched as a flat lift descended from the upper floor. "...Did he go up?" I asked quietly.

"Hey!" Marah called loudly. "Squad B Captain!"

Shaking my head, I got on the lift and waited for the others to get on as well before hitting the switch to go up. As the lift ascended, Marah looked over the edge of it excitedly. "This is a pretty cool lift."

"Don't get too excited, or you'll fall." Dustin said with a raised eyebrow.

She stuck her tongue out at him and placed her hands on her hips. "Like I'm really going to!"

Finally making it to the top, we stepped off the elevator and stood a few feet away from a Galbadian soldier. Actually, it looked more like an oddly dressed woman than a soldier, but I knew better. She wore a veil over her face, with a horn on the top of a strange looking helmet, and a long black and purple dress with jagged points of armor on her shoulders, and it came to her feet. Hanging across her back was a staff with a glowing green stone on the top.

Suddenly, the tower began to shake, and we looked around, before I spun to look behind me and watched with wide eyes as a large, metal cylinder rose behind me and raised high into the sky, before it opened at the top and formed a satelite with blinking lights around the edge. Then, the disk began to glow and a thick beam of light shot from it, reaching far into space.

Turning back to the woman, I glared at he and took a shaky step forward as my legs settled again to the now lack of shaking. "What do you think you're doing?!" I demanded.

She spun to face me, showing young asian features and her eyes narrows as she grabbed her staff. "Huh? Likewise, mister! What do you think you're doing?!" Then her eyes widened and she took a step back as she looked around. "H-HEY! What happened to all of the soldiers below?! Jindrax, take care of these twerps!" she ordered.

Looking around when nothing happened, her eyes widened again and she began to stutter. "J...Jindrax? I...ah... Well, I ah... Seem to be done here." she said with a nervous smile as she began to edge towards the lift. "So, I'll just be on my-"

Holding her staff up, she tried to act tougher. "I'm leaving! Move it! Move, move, MOVE!!"

There was a sound, and we watched as Blake showed up, swinging his blade and knocking the staff out of her hands. "Sorry to crash the party." he said with a grin.

"Hey!" she protested, running over and picking up her staff. Turning to us, she glared. "Are you crazy!?"

Shaking my head, I grabbed my gunblade and settled into a defensive stand. Beside me, Dustin smacked his hand into the palm of his other hand and grinned, and Marah grabbed her nunchucks and swung them around.

Then someone else came running up. Actually, it was something that looked more like a monster than a human. He was white with pale red marks on his white suit and armor, with a helmet that his light, pale yellow hair stood out of. The face of his mask almost looked like a...clown?

_Oook_. I thought with a raised eyebrow as he ran up beside the woman.

He also had a horn on his head, and a set of daggers on his hips.

"Major Toxica... Have you finished the repairs, ma'am?" Then he spotted us and grabbed his daggers. "What is the enemy doing here?!"

Was it just me, or was he a little slow?

Turning her face to him, Toxica scowled. "Jindrax! Where were you?!" Shaking her head, she turned back to us. "No pay this month!" she said as she got ready to fight.

Letting his head drop, he sighed and joined her. "Should've stayed home today." he muttered.

Running forward, Jindrax attacked me with his daggers, and I jumped back to avoid them, raising my gunblade to block an attack at my chest. Countering, I swung forward and pushed him back before spinning and slicing him across the stomach.

Dustin ran at Toxica and began punching her, some of his attacks blocked by her staff. Jumping back, he spun and swung a leg out, catching her in the shoulder and sending her stumbling back, as Marah sprung forward and hit her with her nunchucks, sending her crashing to the ground.

Then, a strong wind blew up and we knelt down, holding onto the grating of the top level to keep from being blown away. Unfortunately for Toxica and Jindrax, they weren't quick enough and stumbled around in surprise as the wind caught them.

"What the...?" Toxica called as she was lifted into the air.

Jindrax soon followed. "Whoa!!"

They were blown away, and in their place, a large monster that looked a little like a cross between a bat and a bee settled down in front of us, glaring at us with red eyes.

"An Elvoret!" Marah cried with wide eyes as we stood back up.

It was one of the monsters that had been using the Comm Tower as a breeding ground. I was about to attack when I sensed something within it and closed my eyes, using my drawing technique to sense a GF in it.

Siren.

A mermaid GF with the element of water, that could silence enemies when called into battles by playing her enchanted harp.

Using my technique, I drew her from the monster before opening my eyes and running forward to slash at it with my gunblade.

Marah raised her hand and a ball of wind formed around it before shooting out to hit the Elvoret, knocking it off balance. That's when Dustin ran forward and punched and kicked at it before jumping back, and I followed suit by summoning a GF.

The sky darkened as we moved back, and thunder was heard. Flashes of lightning shot across the sky, and a moment later, a thick bolt of lightning shot down, hitting the ground and forming a ball that took on the form of a bird, before it solidified into Quezacotl, the Lightning GF.

Rearing it's head back, the yellow and green bird shrieked and a ball of lightning shot out of it's beak, hitting the monster and forming an electrified barrier around it. As the lightning shot around inside the barrier, Elvoret was electrocuted again and again before the barrier faded, and Dustin ran forward as Quezacotl disappeared, punching the monster in the stomach and running up it's body to kick it in the head with a roundhouse kick.

Marah summoned Shiva, and as the Diamond Dust attack cut Elvoret badly, we watched as she faded and the monster collapsed, falling off the edge of the tower and towards the sharp rocks below.

Then, Marah made her way over to Blake who was watching the whole with with a bored expression on his face.

_Lazy jackass._ I thought darkly. _He could've helped._

"Excuse me, Mr. Squad Captain? I have new orders, sir." Closing her eyes, she stood straight and saluted as she repeated her orders. "All SeeD members and SeeD candidates are ordered to withdraw at 1900 hours. Meet at the beach."

"Withdraw?!" Blake yelled angrily. "But there's still enemies around!"

She shrugged. "I'm just the messenger."

"An order to withdraw takes prioity." I stated out loud as I sheathed my gunblade. "I don't wanna miss the boat."

Frowning, Blake's eyes darkened as he turned to Marah. "What time did you say?"

She sighed and repeated herself. "Like I saaiiid. SeeD members and SeeD candidates are ordered to withdraw at 1900 hours. Meet at the beach."

"1900 hours..." His eyes widened and he jumped up. "We only have 30 minutes!" Turning to us, he boarded the lift and smirked. "You got 30 minutes to reach the shore." he pointed out before heading down.

"Heeey!" Marah whined as the lift soon reappeared. "Wait for us!"

Setting my watch to 29 minutes, I began the timer and headed onto the lift with them.

Dustin scowledf as we headed down. "Who the hell does he think he is?!"

I shrugged. "Why don't you ask him?"

As we descended, we were unaware of Toxica staggering to a small computer key pad, and punching in a code. "Those little twirps are the targets." she hissed as a giant machine weapons scrambled around the top before stopping and making a series of beeping noises.

Finally making it to the bottom of the tower, we raced out and were about to leave when we heard the sound of metal scraping slowly on metal, above us, and looked up to find a giant machine inching it's way to the edge of the grating before jumping off to land in front of us.

_We don't have the time for this!_ I thought angrily as I grabbed my gunblade. Frowning, I thought of something, as the light glinted off the steel body. _Machine. Weak against lightning._

Replacing my gunblade, I gestured for the others to move back, and summoned Quezacotl. The lightning attack was amplified on this creature, and one hit brought it down. Once it collapsed, we made our way past it and began to run up the path. We didn't make it far before we heard a sound and looked back at the corner we'd just rounded. The head of the monster appeared and it approached, only to get stuck on the way.

"Huh? It repaired itself?" Dustin asked with wide eyes as we slowly backed away.

Shaking her head, Marah grabbed her nunchucks. "No more."

"There's no end to this." I stated as we turned and ran.

Making it to the bridge, we had to carefully walk down them, and once we were at the bottom we ran again, hearing the metal legs of the weapon, chasing us all the way. Getting to the bridge, we started across when we heard a strange grating sound and watched as the machine jumped over us to block our escape. Turning, we ran back, only for it to jump back, and we immediately spun back, managing to get across the bridge before it could get it's bearings.

Running through the street, we bypassed the Central Square, barely noticing as the dog from earlier, ran off with a terrified yelp. We kept running down the street, but I spared a glance behind me to watch as a leg from the machine impaled a car and destroyed it completely before it continued on.

The thing was gaining on us.

Making it to the archway that led to the stairs down to the beach, Marah and Dustin jumped landing and rolling on the sand before getting up and running towards the last ship there. Our ship.

Unfortunately, I wasn't as fast, and just when I was about to jump, the machine crashed into the archway right behind me, the force of the blast knocking me down and I hit the sand hard on my back, rolling a foot away. Laying there, winded, I watched for a moment as the machine crashed into it again and broke through. That's when I stumbled to my feet, and began to run again, my steps shaky.

The machine was right behind me, closing in as I ran. I saw Dustin and Marah stop ahead of me, turning back with concerned looks and waving me to hurry up. Then, they started running again and soon boarded the ship as it began to pull out.

_Damn!_ I thought fiercly as I boosted my speed, feeling the ache of my lungs as I struggled to breathe. _Almost there...!_

Finally jumping, I latched on to the ramp as it began to lift, and pulled myself inside, looking back with wide eyes as I panted.

The machine was at the edge of the beach, only two feet away and was reaching for the ship when a volley of shots began to rain out and hit it dead in the head, knocking it back. But the shots didn't stop until it fell back and landed on the ground, the red lights marking it's eyes, fading as it powered down permanently.

_That was too close!_

Watching as Tori climbed down a side ladder and entered the room, looking nervous and a little fatigued, I nodded slowly, understanding that it was her who saved us all. Then my eyes turned to Blake as he smirked at us, reclining in the seat as he relaxed.

_Bastard!_

Turning away from him, I got to my feet and sat on the other side of the cabin, still panting a bit as my heart pounded in fear, and my body ached from my landing on the sand.

_Too close..._

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A long chapter. Oh well.

Hope you like it.

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"Man...all they did was get in my way. Being a leader ain't easy."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	5. Fateful Meeting

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Sooo tired. Well, I'm trying to get up as much as I can before I pass out for the night. LOL. All I have to say is... Poor Shane. Poor Blake. Poor Kapri... And all becuase I know what has happened and will happen to them. Aren't I evil? LOL.

The more I remember about this game, the more I think it would've worked much better with Fruits basket. Oh well, too late now. And I want to do this coupling for **Meloda26**.

So yeah, this fic is dedicated to her and **JuseaPeterson**. :)

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(Balamb Docks)

Once we disembarked, we were rushed by Taylor and Eric, looking for Blake.

"BLAKE!!" Taylor yelled as they ran over.

"How's it go?" Eric asked, quieter, as they stood around him.

Blake sighed and groaned, beginning to walk away with them. "Man...all they did was get in my way. Being a leader ain't easy."

"SAFE?" Taylor boomed as the rounded a corner on the street and disappeared.

Rubbing my forehead, I sighed. _Damn, that woman's got a massive set of lungs! Why's she always yelling?!_

Hearing footsteps, I turned to find Tori exiting the vessel, walking over to us with a small smile on her face. "Good job!" she called as she reached our side.

_Oh yeah. 'Cause we didn't almost get exterminated by a giant can-opener._ I thought sarcastically. _Not to mention, we couldn't complete the mission._

"Where's Blake?" she asked, sounding bored, as she looked around.

Looking back, I barely caught the edge of our Garden car disappearing as they nabbed it and rode off, leaving us behind. Giving an irritated sigh, I pointed to the dust track they left and raised an eyebrow at Tori who rolled her own eyes and shook her head.

"Just be back at Garden by sundown." she sighed as she rubbed her temples. "You're free until then." Beginning to walk away, I heard her muttering to herself. "That Blake...he's always getting on my nerves!"

Heading out of town, we walked across the road, avoiding battles, and it took about an hour before we made it back to Balamb Garden. Walking in the entryway, I stopped a moment as Dustin and Marah stretched and sighed in relief.

"_Finally_ made it back..." Dustin groaned.

Marah nodded and lifted a leg to her side to rub at her ankle before letting it back down and doing the same to the other leg. "Seriously."

"Well, I guess we just wait for the test results." Dustin suggested with a shrug. Turning to me, he offered me a brief wave. "'Til then, see ya, Shane."

"See ya." Marah agreed. waving as well as they walked off.

Walking into Garden, I thought about what happened at Dollet. The Galbadian soldiers were after the Comm Tower, but why? _Radio waves can't be used anymore. _It was a well known fact. For generations, radio waves haven't been useable because of a worldwide signal interference.

_Worldwide signal interference. It started without warning, 17 years ago. That's why we communicate online, we use chocobos as messengers. That's why there's no reason to get the Comm Tower up and running again after so long._

Making my way to the directory, I noticed Cam, his father and Tori standing in front of it, talking. They were discussing that they didn't know the soldiers were after the tower, and how they agreed to pull out as long as the tower remained operational.

Then Cam turned and saw me, starting a bit in surprise. "Hey!" Smiling warmly, he nodded. "You did pretty well!"

Tori grinned and nodded. "Of course! He's my best student!" Then she sighed. "He's not very social, though." Turning to me, she shrugged. "The results for the exam should be announced soon. Just stick around here." she advised me.

"How did it feel, Shane?" Headmaster Kanoi asked warmly.

I shrugged, not feeling very social at the moment, like usual. "...Whatever."

He laughed and shook his head. "Whatever? Well, that's good. Whatever!"

I blinked a moment before offering a small nod, feeling completely creeped out. Unlike most people, he never took my responses seriously or got offended, but always had a smile and laughed.

Walking a little ways to the side, I noticed Blake walking over, looking a little angry. "Shane!" he called, his face lighting up a bit as he saw me. "D'you hear about the Communications Tower? We would've been heros if it wasn't for that damn withdraw order!"

"You were only looking for a fight." Tori countered, walking over.

"My dear instructor..." Blake sighed and looked her way as she stopped and stared at him. "I'm hurt. Those are rather cruel words for an aspiring student." Then he sneered. "A mediocre instructor like you would never understand."

Cam walked over and stood beside Tori, who looked a little hurt by his words but quickly masked the expression. "Blake, don't be so stuck on yourself." The Headmaster's son scowled. "You'll take full responsibility for leaving the designated area."

"Isn't it the captain's duty to take the best possible action?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

Cam rolled his eyes. "Blake, you'll never be a SeeD. Calling yourself a captain is a joke." he said coldly before walking off.

Looking to the ground, Blake's shoulders began to shake a little, and even I knew he was deeply hurt by those words, even if he would never show it. Headmaster Kanoi walked over and spoke quietly with Tori a moment before she bowed deeply and walked off slowly, almost looking stunned.

"Blake..." Kanoi stared sternly at the young man in front of him, obviously noting the barely concealed rage he was in. "You will be disciplined for your irresponsible behaviour. You must follow orders exactly during combat. But I am not entirely without sympathy for you. I don't want everyone to become machines..."

"Headmaster." one of the Garden faculty interrupted as he walked over. "You have business to attend to in your office."

"There are so many matters at hand." the Headmaster groaned before nodding and walking off.

Turning to us, the Garden faculty pointed to the elevator. "All students who participated in today's field exam, please make your way to the 2nd Floor Hallway." a voice boomed over the intercom as the faculty member walked off.

I left Blake shaking in a blind rage as I made my way to the elevator. I knew he'd handle it however he normally did. Once on the second floor, I exited the elevator and made my way to the corner, noting that Dustin, Taylor and Eric, along with a few other SeeD candidates, were there. Blake appeared a moment after me.

Walking over to me, Eric gave me an almost sympathetic look. "Taylor was sayin' that it'd be all your fault if Blake doesn't become a SeeD. She can be pretty scary, ya know?"

Taylor scowled and stomped over, kicking him in the leg. "...RAGE!"

Besides being loud, Taylor had this strange habit of yelling her feelings as well.

Shaking my head, I sighed and crossed my arms over my head, noticing as two students leaned against the wall, Dustin paced back and forth in a small area, and a single student was walking along the hallway, back and forth.

A few moments later, and a Garden faculty member appeared, holding a very short list. "Brooks... Dustin Brooks."

"OH YEEAAAAHHH!!!" Dustin yelled, jumping into the air before parading off. "See ya!!!"

"Clarke... Shane Clarke. Please step forward."

Making my way to the elevator, I took it up to the third floor, a little surprised to find two other people there. One was Marah, and the other, a man I'd never seen before. He had slicked back, black hair, fair skin and hazel eyes.

Standing in the lineup, I waited silently as Kanoi walked to each of us, handing us a electronic pad, and a uniform before talking quietly to each of us. Of couse, with how quiet this room was, I could hear every word said.

"First of all, congradulations, however... As a member of SeeD, you will be dispatched all over the world. We are proud to introduce SeeD, Balamb Garden's elite mercenary force. SeeD soldiers are combat specialists, BUT... That is only one aspect of SeeD. When the time comes..."

The Garden Faculty present decided that was enough and sighed before stepping in, interrupting him. "Headmaster...it's almost time for the meeting. Please make this short." Nodding at us, he began to speak. "SeeD is a valuable asset to Garden. It's reputation is solely dependant on each one of you. Handle your missions with care." Turning to Kanoi, he nodded again. "Is that what you wanted to say, sir? Here is your SeeD rank report."

Beginning with Marah, Headmaster Kanoi walked over and handed her, her things. "I look forward to the Garden Festival." he said with a smile.

Next was the unknown man. "Do your best, Xander, even if you don't stick out."

Dustin was all puffed out and excited, though he was trying to be serious and mature. "Try to control your emotions a little." he advised with an amused look.

Now it was my turn and I nodded at the Headmaster as I recieved my things. "Finally...A gunblade specialist."

"This ends the SeeD inauguration! Dismissed!" the Garden member ordered and we filed out, making our way back to the 2nd Floor Hallway.

"SeeD! SeeeeD! SeeeeeeeD!!" Marah sang as she skipped down the hallway.

"Yo, Shane, let's get back to class." Dustin called. "We gotta get ready for the inauguration party tonight."

Walking to where we stood before, waiting, we noticed Blake, Taylor and Eric, along with three other failed candidates, standing there. Once they saw us, Blake stepped forward and slowly began to applaud, though his face _wasn't_ so happy.

The other reluctantly joined in, and we stood there a moment, taking in the praise.

(Dormitory)

Once back at the Dorms, I walked into the hallway, jumping a bit in surprise when I noticed Marah standing there. She was wearing a modified version of the cadet uniform, only it was more mature. It was black and held medals on the left side of the chest, and the trim was gold. Also, the skirt came to her knees. Overall, it was a more grown up look, and was the standard female version of the SeeD uniform.

"HAH! Found you!" she squealed when she saw me. Looking at my outfit, she pouted and placed her hands on her hips. "Well? Well? What do you think?" she asked, gesturing to her outfit before pointing to my room, though how she knew which was my room, I'll never know. "You should get changed, too. We have that party to get to."

Going into my room, I closed my door and locked it, checking to make sure it was _secure_ before changing into my uniform. With the same medals and gold trim, my uniform had a slightly longer coat, and a pair of black pants.

Walking back out, Marah smiled when she saw me and nodded. "Heeeeey! Looking good! Alright! Let's hit that PAAH-TAY!" she cried, dragging me out of the room.

(Ballroom, Kapri's POV)

Standing off to the side, I watched as many people entered and some began dancing. In all my life, I'd never seen such a huge room! Here I was, dressed in a short, red dress with spagetti straps and high heeled red shoes, looking around Balamb Garden's dance floor.

It's been about two weeks since I appeared on this planet. Bridge and Billy took care of me, answering as many of my questions as they could, and making me the _leader_ of their resistance group, the Forest Owls. A princess, if you will. That's what they've taken to calling me, anyways.

Then, I met Blake, only it wasn't my Blake. He was really sweet and when he heard of our problems with Galbadia, he promised to find a way to introduce me to Headmaster Kanoi.

Now, you can imagine how I'm feeling right about now. Blake... Blake Bradley, the guy that couldn't stop drooling over Tori Hanson, was paying attention to _me_. And now, here I am, about to meet a different version of my own Uncle Kanoi.

Awkward? That would be the understatement of the year!

I'm still a little surprised at myself for so easily taking up the role of the leader of the resistance, but somehow, it felt right.

Walking through the dancefloor, carefully avoiding the dancing couples, I looked around, and gasped quietly when I saw an all too familiar face.

Long brown hair, and a SeeD uniform. Blue eyes that twinkled as she spoke to a fair skinned brunette man, also wearing a SeeD uniform.

Marah...and Dustin.

But... I knew, they weren't the people I knew. That hurt.

My own sister. She wouldn't know who I was, and she wasn't related to me. My sister and yet...not my sister. And the Yellow Ranger... Well, he seemed to be the same as usual.

Watching silently as my sister made her way away from him, I sighed and closed my eyes, raising my head to look out of the glass skylight, watching a shooting star fly across the giant full moon.

_Not my world. Not my friends. Not my family, and not my former enemies._

It really was a lot to take in, and now, I had to add feelings for Blake into the mix. I don't know where they came from, or why I feel the way I do, but I always get flustered around him. He even gave me a ring he often wore, which is currently around my neck, reminding me of my dream.

That's when, I felt someone staring at me and blinked in confusion, lowering my head and turning it to find another all too familiar face watching me with a look of confusion. Not angry confusion, but innocent confusion, reminding me, he wasn't who I thought.

Shane. Shane Clarke. Red Wind Ranger, only in this world...not. He was dressed in a SeeD uniform, showing him as a recent graduate, though it really didn't surprise me.

You're probably wondering how I know about SeeDs, huh? Well, Billy and Bridge had sent many requests for SeeD since I joined them, and whenever I asked, they explained what they could. So I had a basic idea of what they were.

Elite Mercenaries.

Which is why I found it hard to comprehend Dustin and Marah being a part of them. I don't know about these guys, but the Dustin I knew was way too airheaded, and the Marah I knew could be awfully clumbsy at times.

But the scar on his face... it reminded me of a glimpse I got of the same face, in my dream. Was he the one who was speaking to me? And...what happened to his face?

Blinking out of my stupor, I felt a strange courage run through me and raised my hand, pointing up to the sky and smiling.

Shane tilted his head a little, following to where I was pointing, back down to my face and still looking confused before sipping on a glass of champagne in his hand. Tilting my own head, I smiled a little more and walked briskly over to him, feeling my heart flutter.

"You're the best looking guy here." I stated forwardly, blushing a little. _What the hell am I saying?_ "Dance with me?"

He raised an eyebrow before looking off to the side and taking another drink of champagne, ignoring me.

"Let me guess, you only dance with someone you like. Ok then." Taking his chin, I tilted his head back to me before swirling my finger in front of his eyes. "You're-going-to-like-me. You're-going-to-like-me." Pausing for a moment, I tilted my head and stared into his eyes. "Did it work?"

He chuckled a little and shook his head. "...I can't dance." he said sheepishly.

I shook my own head. "You'll be fine. Come on. I'm looking for someone. I can't be on the dancefloor alone." I said with a grin as I dragged him through a crowd of dancers, watching over my shoulder as he left his glass on a passing tray.

Once we found an open area, I stopped and turned to face him, giggling a little when he stared at me cluelessly. Taking his hands, I placed one on my hip and took the other in my own. Then I started dancing to the slow song, stumbling a little when he tripped and bumped into me. He hesitated a little, blushing before I placed his hands back in the right positions and beginning again.

This time, we got a little farther before I spun away from him, and accidentally pulled him with me. Bumping into each other again, he raised his hands in a sign of defeat before turning and beginning to walk off.

_No_... Reaching out, I grabbed his hand and gave him a comforting smile before changing our hand hold as the music changed into more of a tango type. We changed steps and circled around each other. Turning so our backs were facing, we looked over our shoulder to each other as we continued to circle each other before we were facing again and he held out his hand.

Taking it, I spun out and back, this time, he managed to catch me properly. I spun out and back a few more times as the music drew to a conclusion before spinning once more, drawing back in even closer, so his arm was wrapped around my waist and I was pressed firmly against this chest.

Blushing a little as I looked into his eyes, the sound of fireworks startled us both and we looked up, watching them explode above us.

Then, I looked back down, smiling at him as he watched the fireworks innocently.

_He's so different..._ But somehow, I still felt my heart fluttering at being around him. It wasn't like my feelings for Blake, but I knew, it could easily grow into something stronger.

I felt my heart sink. _But what about Skyla?_ Was there a Skyla in this world, too? Have they met and does he have feelings for her? But if they had, she'd be here too, wouldn't she? There was a small, almost peaceful smile on his face, and I wished it was directed at me.

Seeing a face I was looking for, over his shoulder, I moved away, smiling, winking and waving at him before walking over to the Garden Headmaster talking to Tori Hanson, dressed in a SeeD uniform, and a couple other people, including one I clearly recognized as Cam, Uncle Kanoi's son.

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You know, I think I'll mention that ther's a twist with a couple of the couplings, and who Kapri's parents are going to be, but you won't find out for quite a while. I guess I can say, just pay close attention to the last names of any characters I introduce in the future, and you might get it. LOL.

Hope you like it.

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"Everyone has to take care of themselves."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	6. Talk To A Wall! and AN at the end

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** :

**Ultimuus** - I'm glad you like my fic. :) I like the idea of trying to combine unusual things. Thank you very much. :)

**JuseaPeterson** - As to who the girls is, you have a long time to wait before you find out, but if you look back at her physical description, it should narrow it down quite a bit. Blake won't be so nice for the majority of the fic. Sadly, I think he even gets worse. The conversation with Shane, I never got. I think that he's really competitive, but kind of likes Shane as a friend because he's good competition. It's been so long since I played the game, if they ever explained it, I just don't remember. LOL

Mad, sad, scared, confused... Shane's a lot of things, and I believe a lot of them will be explained further on into the fic. The school is a military school, and when they graduate, they become soldiers, so yep, that's right. LOL.

Yep, I thought that "Good luck, Blake." comment was cute too. LOL.

Yeah, I brought in Toxica and Jindrax because they suit the characters well, and in the end, they do the same thing as these characters will, which I won't say now. LOL. Blake's a little...off, I think, in this fic. I don't know _why_ he applauded, but he did... I don't think there was anything to Marah finding Shane's room. They all became SeeDs anyways, so...well, you'll see soon. LOL.

Actually, I don't think Blake is IN the resistence. I'm not sure, but I think he might only be helping out. Well, either way, we'll both find out when this story continues.

Wow, long review reply. LOL. Since I've taken up more than enough note room... _On with the fic_! LOL

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(Shane's POV)

Watching the strange girl walk off, I felt somehow...hollow. It was unusual, and awkward, the way she approached me. And I felt like a complete fool when we began to dance. But she didn't get angry or give up. She stayed patient and kept smiling at me.

For the first time in a long time, I actually felt like smiling back.

Then it hit me. She was the same girl that I saw in my dreams. There was an almost sad, pained look about her eyes, and I watched silently as she walked over to Headmaster Kanoi.

Again I found myself wondering... _Who is she?_

_I need some fresh air._

Heading off to the side, I went out onto an empty balcony, grabbing another glass of champagne as I went. Standing alone, I looked out over the still night, listening to the sounds of laughter from behind me, in the Ball room, and feeling the cool night breeze rush across my face.

"You really are an excellent student." came Tori's voice from behind me as she joined me at the balcony. "Even that dance was perfect." she said, raising an eyebrow.

"...Thank you." I said simply, taking a drink of my champagne. We stood there silently until I knew there was another reason for her to be here. "Yes?"

She sighed and turned to me, not looking happy. "So, you'll dance with a complete stranger, but you can't even stand being around me?" she asked, hurt obvious in her eyes.

I shrugged, keeping up my indifferent mask, and mentally telling myself over and over, that I didn't care if she got hurt. "...Whatever. You're my instructor, and I'm your student. It's kind of awkward when you don't say anything." _Then again, sometimes talking can make it even more awkward._ Seeing her look, I sighed. _Like now..._

"That's true." she quietly admitted with a nod, looking out over the night sky. "I was like that myself." She frowned and closed her eyes. "Oh, I completely forgot. I wonder what's to become of me."

_What's that supposed to mean?_

"I came here to give you an order. You and I are to go to the secret area in the Training Center, where students often meet after curfew."

"What're we going to do there?" I questioned out loud. Turning to her, I raised an eyebrow. "Are we going there to tell everyone they're violating curfew? If that's the case, forget it. Leave that to the disciplinary commitee." Blake would just _love_ that.

Tori began to laugh and shook her head. "Go get changed and meet me in front of the Training Center. This will be my last order."

I frowned at that. _Last order?_ What did she mean by that? _Get changed and meet by the Training Center? What's this all about?_

Heading out, I made my way to my dorm and changed into my battle uniform, consisting of what I wore the day Blake decided to give me my scar. Going to the Training Center, I noticed Tori had changed too, wearing her outfit that she wore when we went to the Fire Cavern.

"Shane, I was just wondering... Have you fought the T-Rexaur in the Training Center?"

I shook my head and she nodded.

"It's pretty simple to beat, once you're strong enough. Use a Sleep spell to put it to sleep and hit it with constant Blizzard spells. I still don't get how magic won't wake them up, but it's a quick and easy way to beat one." she informed me.

Heading inside, we fought a few plant monsters called Grats, but luckily, no T-Rexaurs. Making our way to the back of the Training Center, we took a hidden path to a large balcony that a few students were out on. Some were making out, and others were cuddling.

Tori stood at the railing of the balcony, looking sad. "I haven't been here for a while. Shane, what time is it?"

Walking up to stand beside her, I sighed and checked my watch. "Just after midnight."

"Oh well." Her sad look grew and she rested her head on her arms. "I, Tori Hanson, am no longer an Instructor. I'm a member of SeeD now, just like you. Who knows, maybe we'll end up working together." she said with a small grin.

_What the hell am I supposed to say?_ "...Oh really?"

She stood away from the railing and stared at me incredulously. "Is that all you're going to say?"

"If thats how it was decided, you have to abide by it." I explained, feeling a little cornered and nervous. I really don't care for heart-to-hearts, and this was making me a little...scared I guess. I'm not good at expressing my feelings, and _don't_ like feeling cornered.

She sighed and once again looked out over the railing. "They told me I failed as an instructor, basically, I lacked leadership qualities. I was a SeeD by the age of 15, got my instructor license by 17... It's been three years since I got it. I wonder where I went wrong... I did my best..." She looked over at me and frowned deeply when she noticed I wasn't even really paying attention. "Are you even listening?"

I shrugged and glared mildly at her. "Are you done yet?" I asked in a bored tone. "I don't want to talk about it. What am I supposed to say about other people's problems?"

"I'm not asking you to _say_ anything!" she retorted, glaring back at me. "I'm just asking you to listen."

"Then go talk to a wall!" I growled.

Sighing, she gave me a pleading look. "Aren't there times you want to share your feelings with someone?"

_Sometimes..._ "Everyone has to take care of themselves." I said, more to myself than to her. It was something I often reminded myself. "I don't want to carry anyone's burdens." Without even waiting for an answer, I headed out of the secret area, but not before catching her final words.

"...No leadership qualities... Failed Instructor... Perhaps they're right..."

Heading towards the Training Center entrance, we walked silently, fighting whatever came our way. Again, we ran into no T-Rexaurs, but as we neared the entrance, a panicked cry echoed across the facility.

"Someone, help!!!"

Tori turned to me and nodded seriously. "Come on, Shane!" she called as we raced into the main room.

Feeling my eyes widen, I noticed the same girl from earlier, backed against a high wall, with four strange monsters surrounding her. One was a giant, flying bee, and the other three looked like heavily armored armadillos.

Granaldo and three Raldos.

But... They shouldn't have been here. Only Grats and T-Rexaurs were supposed to be in the Training Center, so... Where'd these guys come from?

Seeing us, the girl reached out shakily, her blue eyes wide with terror, and her red hair a mess. "Shane!" Then she noticed Tori. "Shane! Tori?" She almost seemed confused to see Tori there, but the relief in her eyes grew to see us both draw our weapons and draw the monster away from her.

Quickly casting Sleep on the Granaldo, we focused on the Raldos. Part of SeeD training gives us plenty of information on many monsters all over Gaia. With Granaldo asleep, the Raldos wouldn't move and we could dispatch them easily.

So that's what we did.

Heavily armored, I drew on my ultimate attack and hit the Raldo on the far left. Running forward, I slashed it multiple times, ending with a flip, slashing it as I spun in the air, Then I backed up and held my blade out to my right. A glowing ball of energy formed around the center of my blade and I swung forward, watching as it shot out, hitting the Raldo before the ground opened up beneath it, sucking it down and closing up again.

Tori continued, attacking the middle Raldo with her whip before jumping back and raising her hands to her chest, closing her eyes and glowing a light blue. This was one of her ultimate attacks. Blue Magic. It allowed her to use certain abilities certain monsters could use.

An electrical wave shot out from her body and engulfed the Raldos, shaking them violently and damaging their armor, and I took over, slashing the middle one with my blade, bringing it down.

One Raldo left...

And the Granaldo chose that time to wake up and attack.

Giving a shriek, it flew over the Raldo and used it's feet to pick it up, before throwing it at Tori, who was sent flying into a wall.

I quickly recast Sleep on the Granaldo before attacking the Raldo with a Blizzard spell and taking it out. Noticing that Tori wasn't moving, I felt a small pang of quilt run through me and ran over to use a phoenix down on her, reviving her, before we turned back to the Granaldo.

Tori cast Blind on it before casting a Cure on herself, and I cast Blizzard, followed by an Aero. Since it was asleep, physical attacks were a bad idea and would wake it up, so we stuck with magic.

Before long, a final Fire spell took it out and we sighed in relief, sheathing our weapons.

Falling to her knees, the red headed girl gave us both a shaky smile as two oddly dressed men entered, walking right over to her. They were dressed in strange, white outfits, with white headbands and each held a sword, a gun, and I sensed strong magic in them.

"It's not safe here. Please, let's go." The first man said, gently helping the woman to her feet.

She looked at us longingly before nodding slowly. "...Alright."

The other man bowed to us before the three of them left, and after a moment, Tori and I followed their example, but stopped in the hallway.

"Shane..." Tori turned to give me a soft, sad look. "It's not like everyone can get by on their own, you know?" she said before walking off.

Staring at her back, I felt my heart beat painfully. "...Says who?" I countered quietly before heading back to the dorms.

The walk was quiet as all the facilities were closed, and most people were in bed by now. I bypassed a few Garden Faculty members, blocking off the other facilities, and made my way to the dorms, surprised when I found Dustin standing in the main hallway in his SeeD uniform.

"Finally!" he groaned upon seeing me approach. "There you are! Where the hell were you? I was lookin' all over the place!" Then he grinned. "We're both SeeD members, right?"

_Last time I checked._ I thought as I stared at him blankly.

"Well, guess what?!" he asked excitedly. "We got our own rooms, baby!"

_That's right..._ SeeD member didn't have roommates. They had their own, private rooms.

"Your new room's right across the hall from your old one. That's what I wanted to tell you. Man, it took me forever!" he groaned before walking off.

Shaking my head, I went into the hallway and checked the room across from mine, finding that my stuff had already been moved. Sighing, I decided to get some sleep and see what tomorrow would bring.

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Ok, shorter chapter, but I wanted to post something.

I wanted to let people know that it may bee a week or two before I update again. I am by NO means abandoning this fic! I know there are a lot of people out there that begin fics and leave them unfinished, but I REFUSE to do that. I will NOT let my readers down! I am taking a small break because in the past two weeks, my life has become extremely busy, and I am using every spare ounce of energy to keep up, thus leaving me no energy to spend hours a day writing.

So I am waiting for my life to settle down a bit before I continue. I am also taking a break to, hopefully, renew my muse. But no matter what, I will not leave this story up, unfinished. Muse or no muse, I WILL continue this as soon as my life gets back in order and I am able to focus once again. That is a PROMISE!

And it will take no longer than a week or two. If it (for some strange reason that I cannot forsee) does, I WILL find some way of uploading at least one more chapter with an added note to let people know, but I guarantee that I won't leave this for a really long time, and I won't abandon it.

If I am able, I will update as soon as I can, but unlike my other times saying this, I really mean it this time when I say i am taking a break. But again, it is not permanent, and won't be more than two weeks, I am fairly certain.

Forgive me for leaving it at this. I do have a little more written, but not enough to add to this, or make a new chapter.

Hope you like it so far.

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"You are to go to Timber. There, you will be supporting a resistance faction"

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R+R please. Even if it's to tell me how stupid I am, or that you hate me for leaving it like this for a while. (Winces) I hate doing that. I really am sorry. (Bows repeatedly)

Thank you everyone for your support and encouraging me.

Tenshi


	7. Timber Mission and Dream World

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it.

**Note** : Ok, I call it dream world, but it's not really a dream. Don't worry, it'll all be explained, later on.

Quick note - Though I'm using the telepathic communication style _**("Example")**_, it's to tell thoughts apart. The "_**thoughts"**_are Shane's and the _thoughts_ are Tommy's. And an explanation... I don't know if Tommy can' really hear Shane's thoughts. At some point, it seems he does, but then at others, it seems he doesn't. Maybe it's only some times. I don't know and I never figured it out in the game. Sorry if it's confusing.

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(Next Day)

_Damn..._

Woken out of a deep sleep, I scowled at my door for a moment, trying to remember why everything looked so different. Then it hit me. Last night I graduated, and I'm a SeeD now. So this was my new room.

"Shane!" came Marah's voice, whining on the other side of my doorway.

_I'm awake._ "...What?" I called sleepily.

"It's our first SeeD mission. Looks like we're going to Timber. Meet us by the front gate, hurry!" she called before the sound of running footsteps marked her leaving.

_Our first SeeD mission? Already? Wait..._our_ first SeeD mission??_

So I was going with her? Well, I guess she wasn't _so_ bad, but she was pretty hyperactive. Still, not as bad as Dustin.

Groaning a little, I climbed out of bed and got dressed for the day, checking my gunblade before I sheathed it on my belt. As I left my room, I sighed as I walked silently behind a couple of cadets. I didn't mean to, but I ended up listening to their conversation as we walked.

"Ummm... We'll still be friends after we graduate, won't we?"

"What's this all of a sudden?"

I wasn't looking at them, so I didn't know who was speaking. I did know that it was three girls, though.

"Oh, ummm... Nothing really. Just wondering... I guess."

One of the girls giggled. "What do you think?"

"Let's see... I know _we_ will still be friends, but..."

"H-HEY!"

"Take it easy, I'm just kidding!"

"Yeah, it would be really cool if the three of us were still together."

"YEAH!"

Finally getting by them, I quickly made my way to the front gate, walking along until I saw Marah standing alone. Instead of her uniform, she wore a purple leather dress with a short skirt and it was sleeveless, along with knee-high purple boots and her nun chucks hanging off her hip.

Kanoi and a Garden Faculty soon appeared, looking around and not looking pleased. "Where's Dustin?"

I raised my eyebrow at this and shrugged to them. _Great, so he's coming too. Well, can't be helped, I guess._

"...One more minute..." the Garden Faculty said in a grim voice.

That's when a motorized surf board came rushing through the entrance, kin of like a skateboard, only in the air, and made it's way over to us, before stopping by the Faculty member. Dustin used his foot to flip it up and held on to it with a smirk.

"Made it!"

Like Marah, he too wasn't wearing his uniform. Instead, he was wearing long, lose yellow shorts and a yellow top with thick shoulder and chest padding, and short sleeves. On his hands were his same fingerless gloves, and on his feet were yellow, steel-toed sneakers.

"T-Boards are prohibited within Garden. Have you forgotten?" the Garden member asked grimly.

Dustin's eyes widened for a brief moment. "Oops, sorry! But this is really cool! It may come in handy on a SeeD mission, some day!"

"We'll be the judges of that." the Garden faculty said as another approached and he took the board, handing it to him. "Confiscate it." Once the other man was gone, he turned back to us. "All of you are SeeD members, but... Nevertheless, you are still students at this Garden. Furthermore, because you are SeeDs, you must set an example for all of the others and abide by the Garden rules. Understood?"

Now it was Headmaster Kanoi's turn to speak. "Well, about your first mission... You are to go to Timber. There, you will be supporting a resistance faction. That is your mission. A member of the faction will contact you at the station."

The Garden Faculty took over from here. "This person will talk to you and say, 'The forests of Timber sure have changed'. At this time, you must reply, 'But the Owls are still around'. That is the password."

"Just follow the faction's orders." Kanoi finished.

Looking around, Dustin frowned. "Uhh... Just us 3?"

"Correct. We have agreed to take on this mission for very little money. Normally we would have refused such a request, but..."

Kanoi blushed and raised an eyebrow at the Garden Faculty before cutting him off. "Enough talk about that. Well then, Shane, you're the Squad leader. Use your best judgment based on the situation. Dustin and Marah, you are to support Shane and give your all to carry out the faction's plans. Oh!" Turning to me, Kanoi produced a small round, black ball and handed it to me.

As soon as I touched it, it turned to mist and entered my body, and I recognized the feeling of a new GF.

Diablos, the dark GF.

"As I suspected. No one had ever awoken his powers like that before. It seems Diablos has found a new owner." the Headmaster mused out loud, smiling at me.

Other than the GF, I also sensed new magics within me.

Cura, second level healing magic.

Life, a resurrecting magic to revive fallen allies.

And Demi, a dark offensive magic, used to weaken a monster by a fraction of it's strength each time.

And by the looks on Marah and Dustin's faces, they had it too.

"Good luck on your first mission!" Headmaster Kanoi said firmly before he and the Garden Faculty walked off.

(Train to Timber)

Heading out of Garden, we made our way to Balamb city. We could've taken a Garden car, but wanted to build up our strength for our first real mission. Of course, Dustin was overexcited in most of the battles, taking out the monsters before Marah or I had a chance to strike, and in others, Marah actually joined him.

I was a bit confused as to how they hadn't run out of energy yet, and how they actually managed to stay alive in the battles.

It was like they were almost in Kamikaze mode!

Luckily, by the time we hit Balamb, they'd _finally_ calmed down and we made our way to the station.

"The train to Timber will be leaving momentarily!" the station personnel called as he stood at the top of the stairs.

_Just made it._ I thought in relief as I paid for our ticket and we boarded.

Marah ran to a small waiting area and looked around before looking out a window as the train began it's journey, traveling into a dark tunnel. "This train is _so_ cool!" she cried with a huge grin as she turned to face us.

Dustin nodded as he leaned against a wall and crossed his arms over his chest. "A transcontinental railroad, baby!" he said with a grin. "It even runs through an underwater tunnel to get to Timber. Pretty cool, huh?"

"Sure is…" Marah said in a confused tone, staring at him blankly.

He blushed at that. "Guess you're not interested."

_No, I think you just lost her a while back. _I thought with a raised eyebrow as I held my ticket.

"By the way, Shane, you need to use the ticket to get inside." he added, gesturing to the computer console in front of me.

_No duh._ Walking over to it, I inserted the card and waited as the computer read it. "Confirming… Access Granted." a computerized voice spoke as the door opened up.

Marah rushed in front of it before turning back to us with a giggle. "I'm gonna go check out the front!" she called before disappearing through the door.

"Let's check it out, Shane." Dustin put in before he too, disappeared through the door.

With a sigh, I moved through the door and watched as Marah looked out through a large window, and Dustin opened the door to the cabin.

"Yo, check it out! So this is SeeD's private cabin…!" he said as he stepped in. "WHOA! OHH YEAAHHH! AWESOME!" he yelled from inside.

Leaving Marah to stand in the hallway, singing some weird little train song she obviously made up, I joined Dustin inside and watched as he bounced on the cushions of a large sofa before he settled down and stared at me.

"This is so cool!" he cried.

I raised an eyebrow and moved to sit beside him. "…Glad you're so excited." I said in my usual monotone.

He calmed a little more as he held up a pet training magazine. "They even have magazines here."

My mind suddenly began to get a little fuzzy but I ignored it as Dustin babbled on about how Timber is a small city surrounded by forests that came under Galbadian occupation when they invaded. He went on about the fact that there was a whole pile of resistance factions, but when I gave him a look to continue, he shrugged sheepishly and said that was all he knew.

_As if that helps at all._ I thought dryly. "….Thank you, Mr. know-it-all-Dustin." I put in sarcastically.

Obviously, he didn't pick up on my tone and shrugged again with a smile. "No problem."

A buzzing began in my ears and I frowned as my mind grew a little more fuzzy, but I pushed it back and blinked a couple of times to focus. That's when Marah walked in, wiping at her eyes and swaying a little in the doorway.

"I don't…feel well." she mumbled sleepily.

I shrugged and gestured to the bunk beds in the room. "You should get some rest if you're sleepy."

She continued like she hadn't heard me and stumbled as she took a step further. "I'm really tired."

Frowning again, I looked closely at her. "You ok?" I asked carefully.

Dustin then jumped up and staggered a bit as he looked around in confusion. "Hey…? Huh? What the…?!" he cried, his voice slurring a bit. "Something's wrong with me, too…" he said, slumping back down on the couch as his eyes drooped. "I…feel…sleepy…"

The buzzing suddenly increased in my head, and I jumped up, staggering forward a bit as I held my head. I watched blurrily as Marah stumbled over to the bed and collapsed, and Dustin fell asleep where he was. "What's going on…?" I questioned out loud, wincing as the buzzing grew over powering and I stumbled into the wall by the door, leaning against it. "Ugh?! …What is this?"

Before I knew what was happening, I also collapsed, face first on to the floor. I managed to break my fall with my arms, but before I could blink, darkness overwhelmed me.

(In Another Place, At Another Time)

When I finally came to, I found myself running through the woods. Only, I didn't know these woods. I don't recall ever seeing them before, and when I tried to stop, I couldn't. I found that someone else was in control of my body.

Then I realized, this wasn't my body.

For one thing, I was wearing a blue and black Galbadian uniform, and I was carrying a large gun. Then there was the fact that the person had long black hair that fell to just past their shoulders, and I heard an unfamiliar voice speaking.

"Uhh, Tommy? You sure this is the right way?" some guy asked.

_**"…What the…?"**_

I felt confusion at my thoughts, but nothing more.

_**"Huh?"**_

"Whoo-boy! Not again!" a second male voice cut in with irritation.

_**"Where am I? Is this some sort of dream?"**_

"Hey, aren't we here to fight a war against the 'all mighty' Timber army?" a man with short brown hair and brown eyes asked, also wearing a blue and black uniform but carrying a large spear.

A black man with short black hair and black eyes, wearing the same uniform and carrying a set of swords nodded with a frown. "Yeah, so why are we wasting our time, messin' with these animals?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

The body I was in, suddenly stopped and scratched his head as he turned to look back at the others. I could pick up their names from his mind as he searched for an excuse.

Jason, the man carrying the spear, and Zack, the man carrying the swords.

"Well, uhh… You see…. It's just, that…uhhh…" he stammered.

Zack rolled his eyes. "Don't tell me we're lost again." he put in with a mild glare.

"Anyway, we're going home!" Tommy said firmly. "Deling City, here we come!"

"W-Wait! Tommy!" Jason tried, but Tommy ran off into the forest and they had no choice but to follow.

_**"What the hell's going on??"**_ I wondered angrily.

They ran to a vehicle in the forest and boarded before taking the bus to a large city I'd never seen before. Stopping the truck in the road, they stepped out as Jason tried to get Tommy to move the vehicle.

_**"Is this guy insane?! You don't just park a truck in the middle of the road!!"**_

They spoke for a bit, talking about going to a bar for a drink. Apparently, Jason and Zack knew that there was another motive for Tommy to be going to the bar, but he wouldn't admit to it.

They ran off down the street and soon made their way into an Inn and went downstairs to the bar, and where a piano stood in the center of a small stage. The image of a lovely brunette woman appeared in Tommy's mind before it was forced away.

"Welcome! Your usual table is ready!" a cheery waitress said as she stood by the three men.

_**"Huh? Excuse me?"**_ I blinked and then had the urge to smack myself in the forehead. For a moment, I'd forgotten she wasn't talking to _me_.

Tommy apparently either must've heard my thoughts, or felt something strange because he shook his head. "What?" he questioned quietly in confusion.

"What's wrong?" Zack asked with a frown.

"I…" Tommy shook his head again. "I don't know."

_**"What is this?"**_It was certainly too weird to be a dream, wasn't it?

"Huh? Tommy looked at the others in confusion as he rubbed the side of his head lightly.

"Wait a second, is your head buzzing?" Jason asked thoughtfully.

I mentally frowned at this. "_**My head was buzzing before I passed out. Is that what he's talking about?"**_

"W-What? You, too?" he asked, watching as both Zack and Jason nodded slowly.

_**"…Guess not."**_

"Yeah, ever since we were in Timber." Jason answered.

"Me, too." Zack added.

"Hey, we're just tired is all. We'll be fine after a drink or two…or three…" Jason said with a grin as he tried to cheer the others up.

_**"What the hell's going on?!"**_ I mentally demanded.

"Would you shut up, _pu-lease_!" Tommy roared, making everyone stare at him as the waitress ran off in a panic. Looking around sheepishly, he walked over to a table and sat down on the edge of the bench.

_**"Is this a dream…?"**_

They ordered their drinks and relaxed a moment.

"So, Tommy… Kimberly should be making her appearance soon. You goin' for it, tonight?" Jason asked with a knowing grin as he took a swig of his beer.

"Yeah, go fir it." Zack put in with a nudge.

Blushing deeply, Tommy shook his head as a woman with long brown hair and brown eyes appeared out of a side door and walked over to sit at the piano before she began to play a lovely tune. She was wearing a deep red gown with a slit up one side, showing off her leg, and spaghetti straps. Staring at this friends, Tommy raised an eyebrow. "Whatever, man. Can't you see she's working?"

_**"Excuses, excuses…"**_

"Don't go back on your word." Jason scolded slightly. "Come on, go wave to her."

"Give me a break." he groaned. Standing up, Tommy made his way to the edge of the stage, sighing quietly as he stared in awe at the woman playing the piano. _Ah… To be this close to Kimberly…_ he thought.

_**"Is this guy for real?"**_

…_Uh oh… My leg's cramping up…_ he thought as his face grew heated. Kimberly looked up and smiled at him as she continued to play, and Tommy doubled over, clutching at his calf. _Argh…_

Limping around, he moved away from the piano before moving back and giving her a shy wave, making her smile grow a little. Then, he sighed and moved back to his table.

_**"…Sad…"**_

After sitting for a moment and rubbing some more at his calf, Tommy noticed when his friends turned towards him before their eyes went wide and they exchanged looks.

"Ahh…" Zack mumbled quietly.

Jason nodded. "Uhh…"

"Tommy, we're taking off." the sword wielder said quickly as they both stood and left the booth.

"H-Hey!" Tommy protested, staring in confusion at them both. "What's the rush?"

Jason looked back and smirked. "It's on us tonight. Stay a while and relax." he insisted before they both headed up the stairs.

"May I?" a sweet, feminine voice asked shyly a moment later, and Tommy spun to see who it was.

Gaping at the woman behind him, he saw it was Kimberly herself and nodded. "Aaahhh…" he stuttered as his leg cramped up again. Limping to the side, he sat down and turned to face her.

"Did I interrupt something?" she asked softly.

"N-N-Not at all!" he said quickly, shaking his head. "P-P-Please… S-Sit down." he stammered, blushing deeply as she sat beside him. _Oh man! Oh man! It's really HER!!! What do I do?! Jason, Zack, HELP!! What do I say?? But man… Kimberly sure is pretty!_

_**"What is he thinking??"**_

"You ok now?" she asked softly, brushing her hair over her shoulder.

Shrugging Tommy offered a weak smile. "Kind of…"

"How's your leg?"

"L-Leg? Oh! It's fine now. Happens all the time, when I get nervous." he coughed purposely, realizing what he's just said.

Giving him a small smile, Kimberly laughed silently. "Were you nervous?"

He nodded. "Oh yeah. I still am, kind of…"

"You can relax." she said with a soft look. "You don't have to get so nervous around me."

"Oh, sorry." he apologized, blushing deeply.

"Say…" Leaning towards him, she lowered her voice. "Would you like to talk somewhere more private? Everyone's staring at us…" she whispered, turning to look around the room. "I have a room here… If you'd like, please stop by."

Following her gaze, he noticed she was right and literally _everyone_ in the room was staring at them. "I-In your room?!" he almost shouted.

"Well, I've been wanting to talk to you." she admitted, a soft blush lighting up her face. "You don't want to?" she asked, her voice bordering on disappointment.

"Of course I do!" he exclaimed with a shocked look.

Giggling, she nodded and stood up. "Then I'll wait for you in my room. Just ask at the front desk."

As she left, Tommy felt like he was going to hyperventilate. _Am I dreaming? This must be a dream! No, this _can't_ be a dream!_

_**"This is too weird to be a dream!"**_

_Kimberly…? Wants to talk to me…?_

_**"…He talks to himself too much…"**_

_And just the two of us!_ He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. _Pull yourself together, Tommy!_ he scolded himself.

_**"…Whatever."**_

(Kimberly's Room)

As Kimberly pulled open the door and Tommy walked in, she smiled as she shut it behind him. "Thank you for coming." she said shyly.

Eyes widening, Tommy shook his head and spun to face her. "No…Not at all, uh… Thank you for inviting me." he said awkwardly, trying to be polite.

"Have a seat." she said with a smile.

Walking over to the bed, Tommy sat down on the edge of it before he realized he was sitting on _her bed_ and shook his head, getting up quickly and crossing over to a chair to sit on.

Of course, Kimberly witnessed all this and began to giggle at his obvious nervousness.

Getting up, he walked over to her and rubbed the back of her neck as her face turned a little disappointed.

"Leaving so soon?" she asked as she clasped her hands in front of her. "We haven't had a chance to talk yet."

"No, it's not that." Tommy said, his face turning red. "It's just that, I'm a big fan of yours, so I'm really kinda nervous, y'know?"

She nodded a little. "So that's why you came to hear my play so often."

His eyes went wide again. "You…You saw me?"

"You were always smiling while listening, right?" she asked, beginning to pace a little. "You have beautiful eyes, though they look a bit scared now." Stopping by his side, she gave him a smile. "Don't worry. I'm not going to pluck 'em out and eat 'em. I just want to talk, gazing into those eyes." Turning away, she moved over to the window. "Would you like a drink? Wine, perhaps?"

"I must be dreamin'…" he said as he walked over to stand with her. "Kimberly, Tell me about yourself. Like…your dreams for the future."

Blushing slightly, she ducked her head. "I…I want to sing. Not just play the piano, but sing, too."

"Oh, I'd really love to hear that." he admitted honestly. The idea of her singing… He really _would_ like to hear it.

"But I can't." she said, turning away from him and looking at the floor. "I'm no good at writing lyrics…"

"Hmmm… That must be tough." he said with a thoughtful frown.

That's when Kimberly turned back to him and smiled a big, shy smile. "But thanks to you… I think I can come up with something."

"Thanks to _me_?" he repeated incredulously, not believing _the_ Kimberly Heartily was thanking him.

She nodded. "Yes… The many faces you've shown me. Times when you were hurt, worried…or felt pain deep inside you… You're smiles, your face, your eyes… You've shown me something… I think I can come up with a song."

"Wow… I must be dreamin'." he said, repeating himself from before.

Taking his arm, Kimberly pinched him slightly, watching as he jumped a little. "It's not a dream, is it?"

Before he could open his mouth to say anything, a loud knock at the door came and caused them to jump apart.

"Tommy! New orders! Meet by the Residential Palace, on the double!" Zack yelled through the door.

"Can we meet again?" Kimberly asked with sad eyes.

Tommy nodded. "Of course! I have to come hear you sing!" he said with a big smile as everything went black.

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Merrick/Shayla fans, and Tommy/Kimberly fans… you will not want to read this. I'm sorry to say, they _don't_ end up together. Also, pay close attention to Kimberly's last name, which I changed to fit the fic. The twists…Oh, the twists! LOL

Hope you liked it.

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"But seriously, Sir Tommy was _so_ cool!"

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R+R please.

Thank you everyone.

Tenshi.


	8. Timber Mission and President's Double

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : WheN YOU see tYPing liKe this, It's on purpose.

To **Ultimuus** and **JuseaPeterson,** I'm glad you like my fic. Thank you for your encouraging comments.

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(Train to Timber)

A beeping noise sounded and I frowned to myself. I felt like I was lying on something that was bouncing a bit, and I could hear an engine. Remembering what happened, I cracked my eyes open, wincing at the bright light that seeped in.

"Next stop, Timber…Timber…"

I groaned and placed a hand to my forehead, realizing it was my gloved hand and I was back in my body. Slowly standing up, I noticed Dustin and Marah both awake, but looking a little groggy, and very confused.

"Next stop, Timber…Timber…" the computerized voice of the train called out.

I shook my head, forcing away the last remnants of sleep and looked at them with a frown. "Were we…asleep?"

"Maybe someone released sleeping gas?" Dustin suggested with a frown of his own. "There's lots of people who resent SeeD."

_Maybe._ I thought to myself as I shrugged. _Better be careful._

Marah looked over herself and patted down her pockets, and checked her nun chucks. "Am I missing anything?" she asked out loud, shaking her head happily after a moment. "Anyone hurt?"

"…I don't think so." I said, looking to Dustin and checking myself, feeling relieved to find everything in place.

"What a relief!" she sighed as she walked over to sit on the bottom of the bunks. "Everything's cool with me." She giggled a bit. "I had such a nice dream!"

_I had a dream, too._ I thought with a silent groan as I looked away. _It wasn't nice though…_

"The train will be arriving in Timber shortly. For those getting off, please be sure to have all your belongings." the computerized voice said pleasantly.

_I dreamt I was a moron._

"But seriously…" Marah continued. "Sir Tommy was _so_ cool!"

I felt my eyes widen and spun to face her, noticing that Dustin did the same.

"Hey!" he cried. "There was a Tommy in my dream, too! He's a Galbadian Soldier, right?"

"Tommy, Jason and Zack…" I mused out loud, watching as Marah and Dustin both looked at me in shock.

Frowning, Marah shook her head. "There's no way we can understand this… Let's just concentrate on our first mission." she said seriously.

_I guess you're right…_ "We'll put this incident on hold. I'll report it to the Headmaster when we get back to Garden." I said firmly.

"We should be there soon, eh?" Dustin put in, getting up and punching the air a few times before strutting out of the room. "Here we go…better psyche yourself up, baby!" he called with a grin as he headed out.

Marah nodded and stood up before swaying a bit and yawning. "Phew…still sleepy." she said as she rubbed her eyes and headed out of the cabin.

(Timber Train)

Remaining quiet, I followed them out of the cabin, and once the train stopped, the train as well. We were dropped off at a small station in a less crowded part of Timber, and as we descended the stairs, a man ran up to us.

He was wearing a green coat over a white shirt and black pants, and black gloves on his hands. He had short brown hair and hazel eyes. "Oh, the forests of Timber sure have changed." he said in a conversational tone.

I had half a mind to say the wrong password, just to see his response, but with a sigh, nodded. "But the Owls are still around."

He smiled broadly and nodded. "Welcome to Timber, sir. Please come this way, sir." he said as he ran off.

Following him silently, we entered another train, and watched as a blonde man with blue eyes half hidden behind glasses, walked in with a nod.

"So, you guys are SeeDs?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

I nodded. "I'm the Squad leader, Shane. This is Marah and Dustin." I introduced.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Billy, the leader of the Forest Owls." he said in return.

"Let's get on with it, then. What so we do?" I asked, wanting to get right to business.

"Just take it easy." Billy insisted. "Let me introduce you. You've already met Bridge, and I guess that just leaves our princess."

"It's the princess' nap time, sir." Bridge said firmly.

"Ahh, man… Hey Shane, sorry but, could you go get the princess? She's in the last room up those stairs. Some of my men are in a room on the way, ask 'em if you get lost." Billy instructed.

Crossing my arms over my chest, I looked at him with a frown. "…Were we hired to run errands? Well?" I demanded.

"A-Are you angry?!" he cried, his eyes going wide.

I looked at the door and sighed. _We're not gophers…we're SeeDs…elite mercenaries… _"This is the last time for something like this." I growled before stalking up the stairs and through a doorway.

"Ooooouuuch!"

I turned back at the loud groan and watched as Billy hunched over, against a wall, clutching at his midsection. Bridge didn't look at all worried or surprised, so I'm guessing it happened all the time.

"My stomach…" he groaned as he sat against the wall.

Shaking my head, I headed to the hallways and raised an eyebrow when I saw all of two rooms along it. _Get lost?_ I thought incredulously. They actually though I'd get _lost_ here?

"…Whatever…" I continued on and soon came upon the last room. Looking around as I entered, I noticed it was very….pink. The walls, the ceiling, and the bed were all coated with pink, and on the bed laid a girl in blue.

_Isn't that…_

My thoughts were interrupted when she groaned slightly and rolled over, slowly sitting up until her eyes focused on me. I watched as her eyes widened before she suddenly began to smile. "Hey…you're…! You know, from the party…" she said slowly as she stared at me. "So…does that mean…you're a SeeD?"

I nodded. "I'm Shane, the Squad leader. There's two others with me."

I was going to continued, but before I had a chance, she launched herself off the bed and hugged me tightly, the force causing me to spin before I placed my hands on my shoulders and pushed her away. _What the hell?!_

"YEEEESSSSSS! SeeD is here!" she cried excitedly.

Barely able to keep from smiling as she skipped around her room, I blinked for a moment. Sure, she was cute, but I wasn't used to having girls launch themselves at me, or watching them skip around, happy that soldiers were sent to them. "Take it easy."

"It's just that… I'm so happy!" she said as she sat on the edge of her bed. "I've been sending requests to Garden forever, but nothing… I'm so glad I spoke to Cid directly." she said smiling, but her eyes seemed pained at the reminder of the dance, and her smile was obviously forced.

"Oh, so you were looking for the headmaster at the party." I said indifferently. _She didn't remind me of a SeeD._

She shook her head before looking pained and confused. "You know Blake?"

I felt my whole body stiffen up as I nodded warily. "…Yeah…"

"Well, he's the one who introduced me to….Kanoi."

I caught her hesitation to say our Headmaster's name, but chose not to question it at the moment.

"Kanoi's such a nice man." she continued, smiling for real now. "I really didn't think SeeD would come out to help a measly little group like us, but after explaining our situation to him, Kanoi gave the go ahead right away! Now that you guys are here, we'll be able to carry out all sorts of plans!"

"I'm going back to the others." I said.

She nodded. "Ok, let's go! Um, Shane? Is… Is _he_ here?"

_He?_ I thought in confusion.

The girl sighed. "Blake."

_Oh._ I shook my head. "…No. He's not a SeeD."

At this she looked disappointed. "…Oh." Then her eyes widened. "Oh yeah, my name's Kapri Heartily."

I noticed an almost invisible wince at the mention of her last name and she immediately pushed it aside and walked to the door.

"Very pleased to meet you, Shane." she said, turning back to me from the doorway. "SeeD members dance quite well, don't they?" she asked, a teasing glint in her eyes.

"Approach your target inconspicuously at a dance party…" I quipped as seriously as I could. "There may be missions requiring this sort of subterfuge. It's expected of SeeD to learn various skills."

"Oh…" Once again, she looked disappointed. "So it's work related. That's too bad." Turning, she left the room and with a sigh, I followed her.

Once we rejoined the others, I moved to my team mates and introduced them to Kapri.

She nodded vigorously and waved. "Hi everyone! This way."

Leading us into a strategy room, we all spaced ourselves out and listened to what was going on. Apparently, we were to kidnap a V.I.P by ambushing their train. President Vinzer Deling would be aboard a second train. Our job was to jump the train, unlock his car from all the others, wait for our train to come in and hook up to his, then go down and confront him with the help of Kapri.

President of Galbadia. They planned to negotiate the liberation of Timber.

But somehow I felt, this wasn't going to work. Something was going to go horribly wrong. It didn't help to find that this resistance group was so small and unorganized that they grouped together _on the floor_ to plan missions.

Apparently, we only had five minutes to accomplish the mission, and though Marah thought it'd be too easy, I was glaring at her to shut the hell up, because honestly, even _I_ didn't think 5 minutes was enough, but since it was orders, I wasn't going to argue. Remaining silent, I looked at the watch on my wrist and set the timer for five minutes before leaving it so I just had to set the countdown to begin whenever I wanted.

And lastly, Kapri decided she was going to be the one to relay the codes to uncouple the cars to me, and I would be the one dangling by a rope, entering the codes while trying not to fall to my death.

"By the way, the model's nice but the president's car looks kinda shabby. Why is that?" Marah asked in confusion.

Bridge nodded with a grin. "Yeah, Kapri made it. That's why. We bought everything else at the gift store."

"Uh…" Dustin gave her a sheepish look. "I thought some kid made it. The pain job sucks, too."

I raised an eyebrow, checking out the model and had to agree he was right. _Yeah… It kind of does._

"Oh, shut up!" Kapri pouted. "I made it like that on purpose! It's represents my hatred to president Deling."

"Hatred, eh…? Yeah…Right." Dustin said, biting back a snicker.

Marah nodded with a grin of her own. "It's one of the…ugliest things I've ever seen! You must really hate him."

"Are you guys finished?!" Kapri demanded, glaring angrily at us. "Enough with the model! Can we get on with it now?"

We were supposed to decide on a party, but in the end, Billy and Bridge more or less left, making it just the four of us. Heading out, we stationed ourselves on the roof of our train as we approached the other. As we neared it, I ran forward, leading my team and jumped across, landing safely on the other side. Setting my watch to count down from 5 minutes we began to run across the car.

We stopped above a blue soldier, making sure the sensor he was checking, wouldn't show us, and once over a red soldier, took off as fast as we could so that his sensor wouldn't pick us up.

Then, we had to uncouple the first car.

It took three codes, and me dodging soldiers that walked back and forth. Twice, I almost got caught, but managed to side back up the rope and stay in safety. In the end, we manage to uncouple the back car, and had to run ahead. Next, was uncoupling the front car, but this time, I didn't have Marah or Dustin to warn me of approaching guards because they were at the back, waiting for the other train to catch up.

I had to use five codes, but managed to get it done and met Kapri on the top of the train before we ran across to an opening and dropped down, waiting until Dustin and Marah joined us.

Billy and Bridge met us with joyous grins and everything seemed to be going well.

_So why can't I shake the feeling that something's going to go horribly wrong?_

They praised us and ran off before Kapri could recruit them to join us. Sighing, she turned to us. "You 3! Let me know when you're ready and we'll begin serious negotiations with the president!"

_Serious negotiations? Oh boy…_ I thought dryly, checking to make sure I had all my weapons and items.

We walked to the president's car, where Kapri immediately confronted the man sitting in the booth. Sensing that something wasn't right, I quietly drew my gunblade and kept an eye out for danger.

"President Deling!" Kapri stated in a firm, and surprisingly strong voice. "As long as you…don't resist, you won't…get hurt." she said, the hesitation in her voice clearly audible and showing she wasn't as strong as she acted.

Rolling my eyes, I watched as he shifted a bit before responding. "And if I do resist… What would you do…? Young lady?" he asked, his voice halting as he turned to face her.

Kapri's eyes went wide and she took a step back as her face paled.

"What's wrong?" I demanded, feeling more and more that we were in danger.

"Boo-hoo." the president stated mockingly as he stood up. "Too bad… I'm not the president. I'm what they call…a body double."

I took a step forward as he turned more and took a step towards Kapri and she took another step back. This revealed that his face was unusually pale ad his eyes were red.

"All these rumors about resistance factions in Timber… You pass on a little false information and they fall for it… Seems like there's only amateurs here…"

"Ama…teurs…?" Kapri asked, a look of hurt and fear in her eyes.

His body suddenly jerked as he grinned evilly. "Ahh…my butt hurts from all the sitting….Young LADY." his body jerked again. "So…what did you have in stORE for me had I resiSTED?" His body was jerking more violently now as he took another step forward. "Why doN'T you teLL mE? QuITE aMUsing though…for beING such amAtEurs…!! HoW daRe YOU InSUlt tHe presIDent?" he cried, swinging his arms at Kapri who ducked under them and backed up against a wall.

Running forward, Marah, Dustin and I blocked his path to her, our weapons drawn. He grinned before attacking me, but I swung my blade, cutting him across the midsection as he backed off.

"You…fELL…For…IT!" he cried as he ran forward and ducked under Marah's nun chucks to take a bite out of her arm.

Running forward, I slashed him with my gunblade before jumping back, and Dustin took my place, punching at the monster's face before kicking him in the gut. Marah followed last, lashing her nun chucks out and hitting him in the side of the head.

As we watched, he stumbled a moment before his body began to convulse really violently, and a glowing seal formed beneath him. He began to bend in ways humans shouldn't have been able to, and his body began to decay and smoke as it sunk into the glowing seal, more and more steam rising as we gagged on the smell of rotting flesh.

Once he was gone, there was a blinding flash of light and we watched as a skeletal head lifted out, the body that rose, being no where near human. One arm was extremely skinny and boney, and the other was a mass of pulsating flesh with red and blue veins running along it. The smell of decay grew as the body rose higher and one leg looked to be horribly mutated and was very thick with masses of flesh all over it, and the other, like the arm, was all skin and bone.

_What the hell?_ I thought in disgust as he growled and stomped forward.

"He's an undead!" Kapri called.

That meant healing magic would damage him. But at the same time, he also held strong status magics in him. Closing my eyes, I drew zombie and confuse magics from him before focusing on the Cura spell and casting it.

The monster roared angrily as it fell back a bit, part of it's face melting a bit.

Dustin ran forward, punching and kicking him powerfully before being thrown across the room when it swung it's thicker arm at him. Marah countered by casting a Cure spell, and I watched as Kapri ran over and used a phoenix down to revive Dustin before casting cure on him to heal him. Joining us, she raised her arm, a crossbow being strapped to it, before whistling.

A large dog ran through a portal that had opened and stood beside her as she pulled out a doggie treat and placed it on his nose. A white light surrounded us all, and I felt a shield being formed around us as the dog ate the treat before barking and running off.

Raising her hands again, Kapri aimed well and hit the monster between the eyes with a well placed bolt.

I focused again and cast another Cura on it as Dustin and Marah followed with Cures, and Kapri finished with a Cura of her own.

The monster gave a final roar before his body began to sway violently and shake as he melted away. A large pile of steam rose up as his body melted into nothing, and he slowly dissolved.

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I didn't go through all the dialog, because I found it supremely boring to listen to in the game itself. Thus, the reason I tried to briefly explain the mission.

Also, I know I said it'd be a while until my next update, and I meant it, but I came across some time and decided to make good use of it. Starting tomorrow, I'll have less time and energy, but I absolutely HATE the idea of leaving my readers with an unfinished story.

My muse is drifting towards Resident Evil (the games) right now, but I vowed to myself that I wouldn't get into that until I finish this story that is incomplete and posted.

So I have two chapters update at the moment, and am working on the fic more. If it takes me a week or two to update, please don't think I've abandoned this fic because if I have, not only would I say so, I'd remove it within a week in case someone else wanted to try the same idea and actually finish it. But again, I don't like starting a story, posting it and not finishing it, so I'm using any and all spare time to work on this.

Just so you know, there are four parts to the script that I'm following. I'm about halfway through the first, so that should give you an idea about how long this fic will be. Probably close to the same lengths as Of Rangers and Guardians, and Saving Spira Again.

Hope you like it.

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" Man, I can't believe the president was a fake!"

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R+R please.

Thank you everyone.

Tenshi


	9. Mission Gone Wrong, Part 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything. God, these are annoying, but I guess site rules are site rules. (Shakes head)

**Note** : Ok, first of all, for those of you who've read my other PRNS/FF crossovers like Of Rangers and Guardians, and Saving Spira Again, my muse for this one is not as good. I still have one, but chances are I won't update as fast as I did for the other fiction. Still, I am still working on it whenever I can, so bare with me.

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"Man, I can't believe the president was a fake!" Dustin cried, relaxing once the battle was over.

Kapri shook her head with shame in her eyes. "I can't believe we fell for it." she muttered quietly.

"Info sir!" Bridge came running in. "New Info! It's big news! I found out the real reason the president's here, sir! The president's going to the TV station! Security's real tight, sir!" he informed us.

"Let's go back." Kapri stated in a quiet voice as we made our way back to the strategy room.

Once we got back, Kapri leaned against a wall and sighed as she folded her arms over her chest. "…The TV Station? Why in Timber?" she questioned out loud. "They can broadcast just as easily in Galbadia."

"Do you think the Dollet Communication Town has anything to do with this?" Marah asked with a thoughtful frown as she looked at the floor.

"What's that?" Billy asked, his head turning in her direction.

Thinking back, I remembered how the main target of Galbadia's attack on Dollet had been the abandoned Comm Tower. "Dollet has a radio tower that can transmit and receive radio waves. It had been abandoned for a long time, but the Galbadian army got it up and running yesterday." I explained.

Nodding in understanding, Billy frowned. "Ohhh…I get it. The only TV Station that can handle broadcasts over the air is in Timber. Other stations use HD cable, which only supports online broadcasts."

"So, what's that supposed to mean?" Kapri asked.

"They're planning on using radio waves. This way, they can transmit images to regions with cable." Shaking his head, Billy sighed.

Kapri scowled at him for that and raised an eyebrow. "I know that…! What I want to know is, what is the president planning on broadcasting? Why use radio waves? There must be something they want to say to the whole world. What can it be?"

Marah jumped up and grinned. "Everybody! Peace and love!" she cried dramatically.

I gave her a look for that, and noticed that everyone else was staring at her blankly before Billy continued.

"If I remember correctly, radio waves haven't been used in 17 years."

"It's been that long?" Kapri cried in disbelief. There was something about her look that seemed more surprised that she really should have been. Then, she began to grin. "Wouldn't it be great if the first broadcast could be the declaration of Timber's independence?"

"Hey!" Billy seemed to get what she meant. "That might be possible!"

She nodded. "Let's come up with a plan then!" Turning to us, she gave a small shrug. "Can you guys give us a moment?"

Turning to the others, she walked over to a corner with them and they squatted down to begin strategizing. This made me raise an eyebrow. To come up with plans, they sat on the _floor_?

Marah walked over and gave me an exhausted look. "Can't we go home now? Shouldn't we check out our contract?"

Dustin nodded and frowned at their forms. "That call _that_ a strategy meeting??"

We could hear them whispering back and forth and I walked over to crouch beside Kapri who gave me a surprised look. "Oh, good timing! We're coming up with a plan!"

I smacked my forehead with my hand before sighing and shaking my head. "Before we get into that, can I take a look at your contract with our Garden?"

Nodding, she handed me a slip of paper and I frowned at what was written on it. _Squad A… Squad B… Squad C... Huh?_ I didn't understand a word on it, and told her so, causing her to blush and nod.

"Oh yeah, that one's pretty confusing. When I told him I didn't understand, he gave me a different one." Taking back the first contract, she dug around before handing me another. "Kanoi's such a nice man."

Why was there a hint of pain in her eyes when she said that? Taking the second contract, I began to read over it.

"To the forest Owls,

This SeeD deployment contract will last until Timber reaches independence. Please make good use of each SeeD member. I wish you the best with your objective. Please understand that this contract is an exception, and no replacement of any SeeD members can be made.

Balamb Garden Headmaster, Kanoi Watanabi."

"Until Timber's Independence?!" Dustin cried.

Marah shook her head. "That is _sooooo_ vague!"

"Hey, you're paid professionals! No complaining!" Kapri protested with a pout. Turning to her friends, she sighed. "Okay. Let's decide the parties."

"Gathering information is my specialty, sir!" Bridge called, saluting before taking off out of the room.

Billy nodded before doubling over in pain. "Ooouuuuuchh! My stomach!"

So, out of the four of us remaining, I chose Dustin and Kapri as part of my main group with Marah as a backup, in case any of us got hurt. Heading back to town, our mission this time was to get to the TV Station. Apparently, the trains running to it have stopped, so we'd have to find another way.

(Timber, Kapri's POV)

_Wow. This is so much harder than I thought!_

Trying to act like I didn't know these people, even if to some extent, I didn't... It wasn't easy. I wanted to burst out and call their names. Call Kanoi 'Uncle'. Ask Blake why he was being such an ass, and why Cam was being so kind and carefree.

But the same words keep repeating in my head. _These aren't the people you know. These aren't the people you know._ As much as I didn't want to admit it... As much as I wanted to just be able to close my eyes and wake up, to find myslef fighting the Rangers once again, I knew it wasn't possible.

I gave up on the hope that it was all some strange dream, long ago.

Do you know how much it hurts? Facing a different version of someone you love, and not knowing if a relationship is possible? I see Shane, he looks so different, but acts so much the same...even if he's a little more broody than normal... I keep asking myself, 'Where's Skyla?' When's she going to appear and take him away?

_No... That's not right._ I thought as we disembarked from the train. _He was never mine to begin with, so she couldn't take him away._

I barely heard Bridge mumbling something about how the trains to the TV Station were out, and how we'd have to find another way. 'Someone in town should know the way, so just ask around', he said, as if it was the easiest thing to do... What, with all the Galbadian Soldiers around at the moment.

With a sigh, I led the three SeeDs from Balamb through the town, though I was still a little lost myself. I still couldn't get over the fact that I was travelling with Shane and my own sister, but again...not the people I knew.

As we crossed a bridge, I looked down to the multitude of tracks below and frowned a little as I saw not one train pass by. Feeling like I was being watched, I turned my head to find Shane watching me, but he looked away after a moment, not saying a word.

_Why is it, I always feel like I'm the one who has to start any sort of conversation? Half the time he doesn't say a word, anyways. And I thought Hunter was broody! wait... Speaking of Hunter..._

I was a little confused as to why I hadn't run into him yet. I'm run into just about everyone else I knew. Marah, Tori, Cam, Dustin, Blake, Shane, Uncle Kanoi... So why not him?

Biting my lip, I closed my eyes and counted to ten before speaking. "Looks like the trains have stopped running..." _Duh! Way to state the obvious! _"Usually, the local trains would be running here. A lot of hustle and bustle..." _Still boring but maybe not so bad._

Shane glanced at me and nodded slightly, looking bored, before he looked away, and I noticed that Dustin and Marah hadn't even seemed to have heard a word I said. Nodding to myself, I turned and continued on across the bridge, knowing they'd follow me, seeing as I was their 'employer'.

We made it to a hotel, where apparently, we couldn't stay for the night. A large number of Galbadia soldiers had rented every room there, leaving everyone else to fend for themselves. I watched and followed Shane when he went over to examine a model train, similar to the one we used to explain our mission. As I looked at it, I felt myself blush, remembering the not-so-amazing job I'd done on mine, even with as hard as I worked on it.

Then, a lovely young woman with long black hair and green eyes, sauntered up to Shane and I, and smiled warmly before turning to the model. "This model looks really good." she sid conversationally. "Quite some craftsmanship, don't you think?"

I nodded, agreeing completely, and Shane remained silent a moment before raising his eyebrows. "...Better than Kapri's." he said quietly.

I didn't know whether or not to take him seriously, but with this Shane, I knew he didn't joke very often. "Hey! That's mean! I worked really hard on mine!" I scolded, feeling a pain in my heart at his indifferent words.

Raising his hands in defense, he turned to me and offered a small smile, though I could tell it was forced. "Just kidding!" he insisted.

"When someone says they're kidding, it's usually only half true." the strange woman mused out loud.

_So he really meant it? Ok, so I know it was a crappy job, but did he really have to be so cruel about it?_ "...Shane?" I felt my heart drop even more, as his face paled a little.

He looked at me with a clearly apologetic look, but remained silent and I sighed deeply as I looked to the ground. _Yeah, I guess he really meant it._ I thought sadly to myself.

The girl looked startled and turned slightly pale before raising her own hand a little. "Oh...umm...It's just a saying, you know, I'm sorry." she said quickly before leaving.

Not bothering to wait around, I headed off into the town, looking for a way to the TV Station. I knew the others were following me, so there was no need to check, and I really didn't feel like looking at Shane right now.

Walking past a friend's house, I smiled to myself when I heard her laughing about something. "Bridge got left behind again... It looks so funny when he chases after the train..." the woman mused.

I bit back a giggle because I knew it was true. Bridge was a little...slow, and often got left behind, resulting in him chasing after the train as fast as he could, until it stopped and he ran face first into the back of it. To be honest, I was surprised he hadn't gotten himself killed yet.

Then I paused. _That woman..._ I recognized her. She wasn't just a friend...a civilian... Like me, she lead a resistence group. Backtracking, I headed to her house and spoke to her, hoping she'd be able to tell us how to get to the TV Station. Telling her that we were trying to get to the station, her eyes went wide when she realized we were walking.

"What? You're _walking_ to the station?" she asked incredulously.

Shane nodded. "We have no choice. The trains aren't running."

Nodding thoughtfully, she seemed to think about it. "Well, let's see... There used to be a path from the back of the local pub. You have to speak to the owner of the pub about it. He might be scary looking, but..." she paused for a long moment before her face turned almost bitter. "Well, I guess he ain't too nice either. Just go talk to him." she advised.

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" Dustin asked in confusion as a young woman exited the house and the older woman left.

The young woman walked over and laughed. "They fight a lot, but my parents totally get along." she said in amusement.

I raised an eyebrow at that, trying to work out the obviously twisted logic. _Fight a lot but totally get along? How's that work?_

"I can't wait until I meet a guy I can exchange blows with!" she added whistfully before walking off.

Dustin shook his head with a creeped out look on his face. "That's really, _really_ weird." he muttered and I couldn't help but agree.

We talked to several more villagers until we came to a woman who jumped a little when we appeared behind her. After scolding us, she went on about the different trains and where they went to, an about how she was almost hit by a train when she was younger.

"Once, I almost got hit by a train when someone decided to sneak up on me. But a very handsome man quickly saved me..." her face screwed up as she thought of it. "I think...his name was...Oliver, or something."

I noticed Shane frown a little at this but remain silent.

"To tell you the truth... He was my ideal man, but he was wearing a Galbadian uniform. To me, Galbadians are my sworn enemy. They killed my father..." she sighed a little with a confused look. "Kinda sounds like Romeo and Juliet, huh?"

Shane's frown deepend a little more and I thought I saw a flash of recognition before it disappeared and we left the woman by the tracks, making our way to the pub and going inside.

Of course, I didn't bother to question him about it. I knew enough by now to know that he'd remain silent and give me a death glare for even asking.

In the bar, there were two people sitting at tables, a drunk in front of a door in the back, a man in an apron trying to talk to the drunk, and a lady behind the bar. It looked pretty dead, and I listened a moment, to the arguement we'd just seemed to have walked into.

"I've had enough of this city!" the drunk by the back door yelled angrily, waving his arm wildly and slopping his drink all over the floor. "I came from Dollet to have me a good time, but now... Trains are no longer running... Can't even stay at the hotel because of some stupid government official... ! Harassed by Galbadian Soldiers! ...This hasn't been my day." he grumbled. "Those jerks! They think they can use brute force to get everything they want! Hell...this town's a good example! Yeah..."

I felt my heart drop as I stared at him, understanding how he felt. I may not have been from this world, but I understood. He felt trapped. Someone more powerful was keeping him locked up, giving him no place to stay, and keeping him from leaving. It was a fear of being killed that kept him from confronting the Galbadian officials themselves.

_It's different, but it's also the same._ I mused. Back on earth, I stayed by Uncle Lothor because I was afraid to defy him. I didn't know anything else but being evil, I didn't think anyone would give me a chance if I turned good, and I was afraid he'd come after me.

I'd been trapped too.

But is it really any different on this world? I'm meeting the people I knew...the people I loved, again, only they have no knowledge of me. It's my chance to start over new and live a new life, but my knowledge of my world and the people there... It's like it haunted me. A small part of me wanted to know how my family and the Rangers were doing, but the bigger part of me like it here.

Even with all the battles... The impending war with Galbadia... I felt free.

At least...more free than I ever felt on earth.

"Everything's messed up because the resistence tried to kidnap the president." the drunk continued, glaring into his now empty glass.

_But...we didn't know..._ I thought, frowning at his words.

"Thanks to them, the trains have stopped... There's Galbadian soldiers all over the place... All thanks to them!" he yelled as he threw his glass at a nearby wall. "Don't they understand that I'm the one suffering from their reckless actions?! Stupid, boneheaded, good-for-nothing resistence! You can just kiss my-"

"Hey!" I cried, stopping him in mid rant.

Another man shook his head and stood up, glaring at the drunk. "You don't understand anything!" he yelled, a lot more soberly than the other guy. "The resistence is fighting for Timber's future! They're all doing the best they can! It's the Galbadian soldiers and their leader who're at fault!"

I gaped at him a moment, surprised at how well he understood our actions. Then, I grinned wryly. _Couldn't have explained it better myself._

"Pssshh!" the drunk scoffed, sagging against the door.

Realizing that was the door we needed, I sighed and shook my head before going over to the man in the apron and speaking to him. I realized this must've been the man that my friend was talking about, but he wasn't as 'mean' as she'd made him out to be, at all. Actually, he was really nice.

"You wanna get to the back alley? Have fun. That guy gets pissy if you try to move him from that spot, so it might be a little difficult right now. Maybe if you try buying him a drink..." he mused.

Nodding, I looked at the label of the empty bottle he was holding before ordering a second bottle, and watching as he drank it happily. Once he realized it was us who bought him the drink, and our plight, he nodded slowly and got the owner to help him move off to the side. As the door was freed, I turned and grinned to Shane and the others before walking through and into the back alley.

It led us down a narrow path that reeked of garbage before we ended up at the base of the TV Station. There was a large tower in front of us and a staircase that needed climbing, but at least we were almost there.

As we began to climb the stairs, we kept an eye out for soldiers, but luckily, it seemed the outdoor security was low. We ran into one or two but finished them off quickly before making it to the halfway mark and finding a large, outdoor TV.

"Whoa, an outdoor TV!" Dustin cried, staring at it in shock.

I shivered as I listened to the static, feeling thoroughly freaked. "It's creepy...what is it?" It certainly didn't _feel_ like the same static we saw on TVs back on earth.

"This noise is broadcast over most frequencies." Shane explained simply with a shrug. "Something has to be done about this before they can broadcast it over the air."

He was right. It had a strange, almost hypnotic effect and I didn't think it would be a good sign for people to watch.

Suddenly, Bridge came racing up the stairs, panting as he stopped on a case below us and stared up at us. "The president's in the studio now, sir!" he called warningly. "Too many guards, so we won't be able to storm the place, sir!" he finished before running off back down the staircase.

"So, we can't just rush in..." I mused out loud. _Well, I'd say it was time for a Plan B, but unfortunately, I didn't think that far ahead. Oh well, gotta think on my feet, then._ "We've gotta come up with a new plan, now! If the president leaves, maybe the gaurds will be gone, too?" I asked hopefully, turning to face the SeeDs and barely noticing the irritated look on Shane's face.

"That's when we do _our_ broadcast." I continued. "It might not be as influential, but it's better than nothing, right? We don't stand a chance if we take them on head on, right?"

Folding his arms over his chest, Shane looked away with an annoyed frown. "Don't worry about us." he said tersely. "We'll fight your enemies based on your decision. That's our duty."

Wow... I could only stare mutely and wonder if maybe Shane was replaced by a robot at some point. He had the mechanical movements and tone down perfectly.

"You tell us to go, we go." Dustin put in with a shrug. "Even if it's a losing battle."

_I can't believe this..._ I thought incredulously. "...How sad..." _Living under other peoples' orders._ "Act on my decision? That's your duty? Oh, what an easy life it must be, just to follow orders." I said with a frown.

"Call it what you want..." Shane said with a shake of his head before frowning. "All we want is for you to achieve your goal with our help. I find it hard to believe that you can do it, though..." he said thoughtfully, a hint of distaste in his tone.

I felt my eyes widen as it felt like a knife was jabbed into my heart. Biting my lip hard, I closed my eyes and counted to ten to keep from lashing out or crying. "What did you say?" I asked softly, feeling my eyes tear up. He remained silent and I glared at him, holding back my tears. "If you have something to say, just say it!" I demanded angrily. _How dare he..._

Shane's eyes narrowed and hardened slightly at that before he let out a clearly irritated sigh. "How serious are you...? Really...?" he demanded with a raised eyebrow. "The three of you plop down on _the floor_ to discuss strategy??" His eyes grew more irritated and he clenched his fists at his sides. "On top of that, you can't make any decisions without our input, right? How do you think we feel, working for such an organisation?"

_...Wha...?_ Staring at him blankly as I let it set in, I realized he was kind of right. We weren't really that organized, and I did always ask them for their opinion, but we're not playing around! _Is it so wrong to want to know how they feel about my decisions? It's their lives that they're putting on the line, after all!_ I thought as I felt my eyes tear up even more and swallowed painfully.

I barely heard Dustin telling him he was being a little harsh, over the rapid pounding of my heart as that stabbing pain came again and again.

Then he sighed and I turned my wet eyes on his face, noting the hint of apology in his own eyes. "...Sorry." he muttered quietly, looking away with a slight hint of shame in his face. "I guess I got carried away."

_But you were honest, and if that's how you really feel..._ "You know..." I began, clearing my throat when my voice came out weak and shaky. "Maybe this was all a big mistake." _No shit. I should've known that grouping with Shane was gonig to end up badly. _"I thought everything would work out fine once SeeD showed up to help... But I guess it's not that easy."

I bit my lip and turned my back on them as I took a few steps away. "You were hired, it's not like you're one of us." _You just don't understand._ "Um, let's see..." I began to think, trying to come up with a new strategy on my own, standing on my own two feet. "We'll cancel the plan and disperse for now. We don't stand a chance if we take 'em head on, right?" I asked, mimicking Bridge's earlier words.

I looked over my shoulder to see a slight confusion and pain in Shane's eyes and Dustin looked shocked and lost about what to do. I focused my eyes on Shane and forced myself to steel them against his gaze. "So...you probably think this is all just a game to us." I put in bitterly. _You have no idea, but how could you? You don't even know what's going on. Never experienced it personally._ "Well it's not!" I cried, glaring at him as a tear made it's way down my cheek. "We're serious! So serious...it hurts!"

Without even waiting to see if the ever fearless and cold-as-ice leader had a response to my words, I turned and raced down the steps, making my way into town and leaving behind the two SeeDs, passing Marah as she made her way up to join them. I didn't even pause to see if she stopped or not.

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Yeah, Shane's got problems. I thought he and Squall (the real character from the game) fit perfectly because their attitudes seemed a lot alike. In the beginning, I felt, Shane was colder to his companions, though not nearly this bad, but as the show continued, he got nicer, as did Squall. Again, there are numerous twists that are going to be fun working with. Bonds between characters that you might not have expected (unless you've played FF8), a certain character with parents that you might not have suspected, certain characters ending up with odd couples (which I didn't see until too late, sorry!), and more...

Hope you liked it.

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"Timber team, are you watching? Get over here right now! You _have_ permission! I need your help!"

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R+R please.

Thank you everyone.

Tenshi.


	10. Mission Gone Wrong, Part 2

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

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(Shane's POV)

_Great. Just great. An over dramatic, over sensitive leader... Just what I needed._ I thought darkly as I watched her long blonde hair sway back and forth as she ran off. Then I frowned to myself. _Still... I know I was being too hard on her. Why did I say that?_

Maybe it was because she wanted me to. It wasn't just her words, but the look in her eyes. She wanted to know how I really felt, but...I didn't need to go off on her like that. I just snapped. I saw it in her eyes. I hurt her deeply.

Ok, I know they're serious about all this. I mean, I think hiring SeeD and planning kidnapping missions pretty much marked just how serious this was, but their disorganisation was what got me so mad. I constantly found myself wondering if they knew what they were doing, or if it was really what they wanted, and I hesitated because of it.

And I didn't like hesitating or second guessing myself.

_So... Why am I doing it now?_ I thought, forcing myself back to the present as Marah came rushing up to us with a look of confusion, having obviously seen the crying Forest Owls leader on her way up.

"...?" Giving me a questioning gaze, Marah was clearly unsure of what to ask or how to ask it, so she remained silent.

That's when the TV began to buzz louder and the static flickered. Turning to it, I felt my eyes narrow in confusion as I waited to see what was going to happen.

"Are they starting?" Marah asked cluelessly as the static image faded and cleared to show a podium with an anchorman standing behind it in a red draped room.

"T-Testing...1...2... Testing... Testing..." he said into the microphone before he looked off stage and his eyes widened a moment. "Ohhh!" Looking back at the camera, his eyes shone with awe. "P-People of the world! Can you see me? Can you hear me?" he asked excitedly. "Oh, this is incredible! Ladies and gentlemen, this is not a recording! This is an actual broadcast over the air!"

_We can see that._ I thought dryly as the anchorman sighed happily and waved his hands.

"Yes, it's been 17 years since a live broadcast has been possible!" Then he looked off stage again and turned serious, nodding before he turne back. "Oh, please excuse me... I seem to have lost my composure. We would like to present to you today a message from the lifelong President of Galbadia, Vinzer Deling. Ladies and gentlemen, President Deling!"

As he moved aside, an older man with greying, thinning hair stepped forward, dressed in a navy suit, and took the stand. He stared seriously out into the camera and nodded before beginning his speech. "Greetings. I am Vinzer Deling, lifelong President of Galbadia. Today, I stand before you to make the following proposition. We, the people of the world, have the power to end all wars."

Marah giggled and pointed at the screen before jumping excitedly. "See, see! It's a peace proposal to the world! I knew it!" she cried cheerfully.

I frowned at this and glared warily at the image before me. _I doubt it. He's planning something._ I thought suspiciously. Men like him didn't strike me as the type to invade a town, occupy it, pretty much enslave it, and then suddenly want peace. There had to be something in it for him. There had to be some kind of strings or secrets.

"Unfortunately, there are some trifling problems standing between Galbadia and other nations, and they must be resolved." he said pretty emotionlessly.

_I knew it. _I raised an eyebrow when there was a loud crashing noise on the other end of the image, but President Deling seemed to either not hear it or ignore it. _What's going on?_ I began to get even more suspicious as to what was going on.

"I plan to convene with other nations' leaders immediately to resolve these problems." he continued after a moment. Frowning at something, he looked down at the podium before continuing. "At this time, let me introduce the ambassador who will be my representitive for the conference."

Dustin raised an eyebrow and frowned as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Man, all this just to announce an ambassador?"

"The ambassador is the Sorceress..." the President continued.

"...The sorceress?" I offered in confusion. _Who's that?_

Suddenly, a soldier ran in and aimed a gun off screen, and a flash of navy blue and a light, and the soldier fell to the ground, unmoving. There, in his place, stood Blake, grinning almost evilly as he shot two more guards and ran over to the President, standing behind him with his gunblade to his throat.

"Heeey!" Marah cried in recognition.

Dustin's jaw dropped. "Blake?!"

_What the hell?! That idiot's gonna get himself killed and the rest of us in trouble!_ I thought, staring with wide eyes at the image in front of us.

"What's he doin'?" Marah asked warily as Blake took a step back, dragging the hostage President with him.

Another figure appeared on the screen and Dustin's eyes threatened to pop out of his head. "Instructor Hanson?!"

Tori Hanson stood there in her battle outfit, her whip wrapped around her waist as she turned her back to Blake and held her arms out, stopping the soldiers with a look of worry, bordering on panick. "Stay back!" she called urgently.

"Shane, what're we gonna do?" Dustin cried, bording on panic himself.

"For the last time, stay back!" Tori cried as gaurds approached. "You're only going to provoke him!"

"...Nothing." I said finally, staring at the screen unsurely. "Our job is to assist the Forest Owls. It's none of our business."

As if hearing my words, Tori turned to the camera and ran closer to it, her desperation showing on her face as she panted a bit. "Timber team, are you watching? Get over here right now! You _have_ permission! I need your help!" she cried as the camera shut off.

"Shane?!" Dustin cried.

Marah stomped her foot. "Squad Leader!"

Nodding to them, I remained silent as we ran for the tower. It only took us a couple of minutes until we burst upon the confusing and shocking scene, staring at Blake who looked torn between whether he should be laughing or panicking. He still held the President hostage, with his gunblade around his throat, but strangely, the man didn't seem the least bit worried.

In fact, he almost seemed inhumanly calm.

"We need to restrain him!" Tori hissed in a worried voice as Blake eyed us all with a wary smirk.

I took a step forward and glared at him calmly, hiding the pounding of my heart. _If he slips...if he kills the President, even by accident, we're all dead..._ "What do you think you're doing?" I asked calmly. _What the hell are you thinking?_ my mind demanded.

He sneered and shook his head. "It's obvious, ain't it?!" he shot back, clearly agitated. "What are you planning to do with this guy?"

Frowning, I crossed my arms over my chest. "...Planning to do?" I repeated in confusion before it hit me. _That's right. He knows Kapri. Is that why he's here?_ Was this Blake's sick way of helping her out? Doing her a favor?

"I get it!" Dustin cried, his eyes lighting up in understanding. "You're Kapri's..."

"Shut your damn mouth!" Blake yelled angrily, waving his gunblade wildly. "You chicken!"

Tori stepped forward then. "He broke out of the disciplinary room, injuring many in the process." she said quietly to me.

"YOU STUPID IDIOT!!" Dustin screamed, shaking violently with supressed anger.

_Dustin, please..._ "Shut up." I said emotionlessly to him.

"Instructor, I know!" he cried. "You're gonna take this stupid idiot back to Garden, right?"

"Shut up!" I repeated as he finished that sentence. "NO!"

But it was too late.

The President had heard all this and smirked like he'd found his wildcard out of this mess. "I see...you're all from Garden." he stated coldly. "Should anything happen to me, the entire Galbadian military will undboutedly crush Garden." He then glanced over his shoulder at Blake who was seething with rage at Dustin for his outburst. "You can let go of me now."

Ignoring him, Blake tightened his hold, pressing his gunblade more firmly against the man's throat as he shook angrily and glared daggers at the brunette SeeD. "Nice going, you dumb chicken!" he yelled. "You and your stupid big mouth! Take care of this mess, _Instructor_ and _Mr. Leader._" he said mockingly to me and Tori as he carefully backed out of the room and we watched helplessly.

(Normal POV)

As Blake backed into a backroom with the hostage President, he noticed the off colored air in the room and the faint, sweet smell of jasmine. _No, wait..._ he thought suspiciously, hearing the sound of light footsteps and releasing his hostage instinctively as he spun with his gunblade out.

_That's not air..._ It was some sort of light violet mist, filling the room and almost choking it.

Blake could feel his mind becoming fuzzy as the footsteps grew louder, as well as a faint sound of bells ringing lightly with every step.

The sense of _power_...!

Frowning, he held his blade ready as the President grasped at his throat and ran off as fast as he could. _What the hell?!_ This _wasn't_ normal! Why did he suddenly feel caged, but strangely, have only a weak urge to fight it?

"...poor, poor boy..." a soft, feminine voice cooed, sounding faintly Japanese, as the steps grew to a halt a moment._ He's strong... He'll suit perfectly._

Opening his mouth to speak, Blake closed it when he realized nothing was coming out. _Who...? Who's there and why?_

The sound renewed and a woman stepped through a wall around a corner. Walking forward, she stopped in front of Blake and gazed upon him with glazed, empty black eyes. Her face and body showed no emotion, but her mind was filled with a sadistic pleasure as she stared at the young man in front of her.

_So lost... Perfect. He shall serve my purposes well, as does this one..._ she thought darkly, allowing a faint, fake, comforting smile to form on her face as she took a single step forward.

Taking a quick step back, Blake's eyes widened and he held his blade out, his finger over the trigger. "Stay away from me!" he cried in a panicked voice as he looked around wildly. What he was looking for, he wasn't sure. Was it a means of escape? Looking for someone to come rushing to his aid? Perhaps a better weapon to take on this obviously powerful woman?

"Such a confused little boy..." she said in her soft voice, stepping into the light.

Blake frowned at this. _She looks so familiar._ he thought suspiciously.

The strange woman had long black hair tied up into a bun on her head and wore a strange headdress with strands of beads hanging from the sides of it in colors of red, yellow orange and black. She wore a long black, formfitting gown with a deep neckline and long black gloves that covered her arms entirely. Behind her, there was a long, translucent, black train that dragged on the ground behind her, and black metal spikes stood out from the back of the gown itself in a fan shape.

What got him, though, was her face. The eyes had a tint of yellow to them and seemed so emotionless, but overall, he knew that he somehow knew this woman.

_The President..._ Hadn't he said something about introducing an ambassador? The sorceress? Was this her? It had to be, who else could it be?! But...that wasn't how he knew her. It felt like he'd met her a long time ago...

Then he was faintly reminded of his dream. The one thing he always wanted most in life, was to be a knight for the sorceress. And if there was no sorceress, he just wanted to be a great bodyguard. A protector. A saviour.

A hero.

"Are you going to step forward?" she asked with an amused grin. "Retreat? You have to decide." she stated calmly, taking another step forward.

_Decide... But, I... No..._ He couldn't think! Shaking his gunblade wildly, he aimed at her once again, glaring angrily at her. "Stay back!"

There was another sound of footsteps, but these sounded a little heavier and like they were running. Frowning, Blake looked over his shoulder and saw Tori running towards him, a look of anger, confusion and worry etched into her beautiful face. Sneering to himself for his thoughts, he watched as she was hit by a blast of energy and knocked into a nearby wall where she laid stunned, watching the whole thing but unable to stop it.

_I won't allow those accursed SeeDs to interfere!_ came a dark thought as the woman lowered her arm, noticing that the boy had turned back to her and was watching her suspiciously and with confusion. With amusement, she also noticed a faint hint of concern in his eyes as his face turned, briefly, back to the SeeD before it returned to her.

"The boy in you is telling you to come. The adult in you is telling you to back off." she said calmly, taking another step forward and smiling victoriously. "You can't make up your mind. You don't know the right answer."

_No...I don't._ he thought with a mental frown, staring at the woman in confusion. _But, how'd she know? Can she read me?_ Shaking his head, he took a step backwards, feeling a cable from one of the cameras at the heel of his foot. _Why does she look so damn familiar?!_

"You want help, don't you?" she asked as she tilted her head a little.

Blake bit his lip. _I...I dunno. I...ye-no, NO! I don't want... I don't _need_ help!_

"You want to be saved from this predicament."

"Shut up!" he yelled, finally having enough of her soft taunts. _Stop it!_

She smiled again and took a step forward, bringing herself right in front of Blake, whom she noticed, didn't raise his blade to stop or try and kill her. "Don't be ashamed to ask for help." she said sincerely. "Besides, you're only a little boy." _One I can easily bend to my will. Join me..._

"I'm not..." he said quietly, fighting the urge to sheathe his blade and join her so easily. "Stop calling me a boy." he tried to demand, biting his tongue when his voice came out shaky and weak. _Wait..._ Looking at her closely, he felt his face drain of color as he finally realized who she really was.

This seemed to amuse the stranger. "You don't want to be a boy anymore?"

"Stop calling me a BOY!" he yelled, shaking with rage.

_It's time..._ "Come with me to a place of no return." she said gently, noticing how the fight in his eyes faded and he seemed to really be thinking about it. "Bid farewell to your childhood."

_This... Is this my chance to fulfill my dream? What about Garden? Instructor Hanson... Kapri... NO! All they've ever done is humor me or humiliate me! I'm tired of being nothing but a joke to everyone! I'll show them!_ Looking up, he watched as she raised her hand, feeling power surge through her, and hearing protesting grunts from behind him.

Realizing that more people had entered the room while he was battling his thoughts, he turned to find Shane, the messenger girl, that chicken wuss, and the Instructor, all kneeling on the ground and frozen. They had looks of anger and confusion on their faces, and were obviously struggling against the paralysis spell, but were unable to break free.

_Yes... I'll show them. I'll show them I'm a hero! I'll put that Shane in his place._ he thought darkly, allowing a sick smirk to come over his face as he waved cockily at them before walking away with the woman._ I'll be Matron's knight! I'll protect her, even as they all turn against her! How could they?! After all she's done..._

Noting the faint pruple flash in his eyes, before it disappeared, the woman smirked to herself. _A little influence... That's all it took and now I have yet another puppet. Let us see what this one is capable of._ she thought evilly as she followed him through the wall, the portal closing up behind him. The wall rippled with energy before it lightened and solidified, the purple mist emptying quickly from the room and the SeeDs once again able to move.

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Ok, I KNOW some people will wonder why he called her 'Matron'. That'll be explained in future chapters, as well as his thoughts on how they 'betrayed' her and 'after all she's done...'. And you'll also find more explanations for probably a lot of your questions. Just stay tuned to the later chapters. It'll likely take until around chapter 30 or so before certain things are explained, so please be patient. I don't want to give it all away right away.

I hope this explains a little to Blake's mindset and why he acts the way he does. I always found that character to be a confusing one, so I hope I am able to explain enough to help you figure it out.

I think I just figured it out... You know how Billy's always in pain? I was thinking, it could be a stomach ulcer, or maybe he just has a REALLY weak stomach for battles and stuff... It was never explained in the game, so feel free to use your imagination.

Hope you like it.

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"He was so angry when he found out it was only the three of you dispatched to Timber."

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R+R please.

Thank you everyone.

Tenshi


	11. Heading to The Nearest Garden

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

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(Shane's POV)

Once the spell broke, I jumped to my feet and ran to the wall, feeling along it with my hand to note it was solid. _You idiot! _I thought angrily. That was the sorceress, and he'd willingly gone with her. What was _wrong_ with him?!

"Hey guys!"

Turning my head, I noticed a headache forming as I watched the blonde head of Kapri come running in. Panting a little, she bent over to catch her breath as I rejoined the others.

Once she was breathing normally, she looked around in confusion. "Where's Blake?"

_She knew he was here?_ I thought in confusion, shrugging a little. "We don't know." I answered honestly. _Just that he was an idiot and walked off with the enemy._

Her face fell and a look of concern crossed over it as she bit her lip. "Oh... He'll be ok, right?" she asked hesitantly before shaking her head. Gesturing for us to follow her, she turned and ran off in the direction she'd come.

Hesitating a moment, I sighed. "She's still our employer." I muttered under my breath, following after her a moment later. _Why... Why do I feel so strange when she shows concern for him? A pain... Why's it even affecting me?_

We ended up back in front of the station, and ran down the path until we got to the stairs. Beginning down them, I noted how Kapri stopped briefly in front of the giant outdoor TV and turned back with a dark look in her eyes. "They found our base." she called loud enough for us to hear. "It's completely destroyed."

_Damn!_ So that was one way out of the town scrapped. _At least she's safe..._ But what about Billy and Bridge?

Marah seemed to read my thoughts and tilted her head as she regarded the slightly shaking Forest Owls leader. "What about the others?"

This made Kapri smile a bit, thought it looked pretty weak. "They're fine. They're good at escaping." she responded before we continued our race down the stairs.

Once at the bottom, we paused by some garbage cans and stood as a large group. Kapri looked nervous as she walked up to me and looked warily into my eyes. "We need to get away from Timber a bit. Is there a safe place you can take me?" she asked softly.

I crossed my arms over my chest. _Not again. I thought we were done with all this._ I thought in irritation. Sighing, I looked at her and noticed as she got this teasing grin and a sparkle in her blue eyes. _Oh no..._

"This is an order, an order from your client, remember?" she reminded me with a raised eyebrow.

Slapping my forehead with my palm, I sighed loudly and nodded slowly. "...Alright." I agreed reluctantly.

With a happy nod, she led us back into the bar, where the woman we'd spoken to before stood, staring at us with worry and concern in her dark brown eyes. "Kapri!" she called once she saw the Forest Owls leader. "I heard your base was in serious trouble. Come over to my place until things settle down." she called.

I wouldn't admit it, but a place to rest sounded good right about now. And would admit even less, that seeing Kapri all right relieved me. I felt the strangest urge to protect her with my life. Sure she was annoying as hell, but there seemed to be a hidden vulnerability that drew me. Why? I didn't know, but I felt like I couldn't fight the feeling.

"I appreciate it, thank you." Kapri said with a genuine smile before she took off after the woman, Marah and Dustin on her heels.

Tori began to run too, before stopping and looking at me with a raised eyebrow. "Shane! What're you waiting for? Come on, let's go!" she called before racing off.

Shaking my head, I sighed and followed the others, heading out of the bar and into town and following Kapri back to the woman's house.

"I'll let you know if anything changes. Until then, make yourself at home." the woman advised with a friendly smile.

Kapri nodded with a wry grin. "Thanks, Chief."

I raised an eyebrow at this. "Chief?"

Turning to me, she nodded and grinned. "She's the leader of the Forest Fox. Almost everyone's a resistence member in this town. But right now, we're the only ones that are really active. Let's stay here for a while." she suggested before heading up the stairs.

The rest of us followed her and watched as she sat on the edge of a bed. Tori walked over to the window to look out over the alley we'd run through, and Marah sat beside Kapri on the bed. Dustin stood against the far wall and sulked with his arms crossed over his chest.

"I still don't get it." Marah said with confusion on her face. "What did Blake come here for?"

_Isn't it obvious?_ I thought sarcastically as Kapri answered her.

"I think...he came to help us, the Forest Owls. I talked about it a lot with him." she admitted with a small blush and slightly confused look on her face. Giving me a pleading glance, her look almost begged me to understand. Understand what, who knew? "So please...don't think to badly of him."

_He ran off with the enemy._ I thought darkly. _What am I supposed to think?_

Faintly we heard the sounds of knocking and the voice of what was obviously, a Galbadian Soldier. "Anybody in here?!"

"What is this?! I have two small children in here. Don't do anything to frighten them!" the Chief called as her oldest daughter rushed in to see us.

"Just stay up here and stay quiet and everything'll be fine." she said with a small grin.

"Will she be ok?" Kapri asked nervously.

The girl nodded. "She'll be fine. The legend goes...that my mother took down many soldiers with her strength, cooking and beauty."

"That 'beauty' part sure makes it sound like a legend." Marah said thoughtfully before her eyes widened and her face paled.

The girl just laughed and nodded in agreement before leaving quietly.

"...I wonder if he's alright." Kapri said softly, pulling her legs up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them.

Tori sighed and rolled her eyes. "He was so angry when he found out it was only the three of you dispatched to Timber." Making a face, she began to mimick what he'd said, deepening her voice to add to the effect. "WHAT?! They might end up fightin' the whole Galbadian force!"

_I really doubt that._ I thought dryly.

"And all they dispatch are three rookie SeeD members?!"

At this I bit my lip to keep from sneering. _At least we made it as SeeDs._ I thought darkly, banishing the thought as quickly as it had come. He sure had some attitude to look down on us, especially since he was still a SeeD cadet after all this time.

"Dammit! I'm going to Timber!" Sighing, she looked out the window once more. "I never would've imagined he was serious about it."

I frowned at her back and raised an eyebrow. _That guy's always serious. You should know that by now..._

"What's going to happen to Blake?" the former Instructor asked softly, turning back to face us.

Shrugging, I thought about it before answering in my usual monotone. "He may already be dead."

Kapri's head swung in my direction with a shocked look. "How can you sound so casual? I actually feel...sorry for him." she admitted softly.

At this, I couldn't help but grin. _...Feel sorry? Blake would hate to hear that._ All his life, Blake hated pity and sympathy, turning on those who'd dare show him kindness. Why he was filled with such anger and hate, no one could possibly know, but one thing was for sure...it ruled him.

She must've seen my grin because her eyes narrowed angrily and she let her legs drop quietly to the floor as she slammed her hands into the blankets at her sides. "What's so funny?!" she hissed as she glared at me. "You're terrible!! So...why do you think Blake might already be dead?!" she challenged.

Rolling my eyes, I turned my face away from her. _Because..._ "The President of Galbadian and the sorceress joined forces. Blake attacked the President. It's no surprise that Blake might have been killed because of it." I explained emotionlessly.

"Even so!" she retorted. Sighing, she looked at the floor. "I still hope he's alive."

Ok, so I felt a little bad for her, but still... I didn't let it show. _Think what you want... Reality isn't so kind. Everything won't work out the way you want it to, that's why..._ I thought as I regarded her for a moment, looking at the floor as I unconsciously voiced my thoughts. "As long as you don't get your hopes up, you can take anything." I said quietly. "You feel less pain." _It worked for me, at least._ Shaking my head, I focused my gaze on the confused face of Kapri and shrugged with an indifferent look. "Anyway, whatever you wish is none of my business."

Her look turned from one of confusion and pain, to one of hurt and a little anger. Glaring at me, once again, she rolled her eyes. "...You're mean." she said simply.

I had a feeling she wanted to say something more along the lines of, 'you're such an ass!' but for some reason, she held back.

"MEANIE!" she stomped, standing up and turning her back on me.

Blinking for a moment, I felt totally lost as to why she was so angry. _What's her problem?_ I wondered silently as I felt my eyes narrow. "...Sorry." I muttered in confusion.

The older woman from before suddenly entered with a slight smile on her face and nodded to us. "The Galbadian Forces are withdrawing. Only the soldiers normally stationed here will remain. If you're gonna leave town, now's your chance. You know how persistent those soldiers can be." she said with a raised eyebrow before leaving.

Tori, Marah and Dustin followed after her eagerly, and Kapri hesitated a moment. Giving me an apologetic look over her shoulder, she slowly moved to follow them, and still being completely lost, I just followed her silently.

"I wanna go home!" Marah whined, leaning against the wall of the kitchen, downstairs. Dustin remained silent, but had a look of deep guilt and worry etched into his face, and I knew he was thinking about spilling that we were from Garden.

He was feeling remorse, and probably like a total idiot for speaking without thinking.

"I guess everyone's tired." Tori murmured as she leaned against a cupboard. "Shane, what's the plan? Getting out of here's only the first step."

I moved by the door and frowned as I crossed my arms over my chest and looked away. "What do you mean?" I asked quietly.

She gave a slight smirk before closing her eyes. "Garden Code, Article 8, Line 7..." she said firmly.

Closing my eyes, I thought back to what I'd leaerned. _Article 8, Line 7... In the event that returning to the assigned Garden is not possible... _"Head for the nearest Garden." I stated out loud, opening my eyes and looking at Tori, noticing how she was nodding with a happy look in her eyes.

"Very good!" she praised as she stood up. "From here, that would be Galbadia Garden."

Kapri stood beside her. "We can take a train from here and get dropped off at a station called East Academy. It's just a short walk through a nearby forest before we reach the Garden itself." she informed us with a nod.

Nodding in understanding. I chose Tori and Dustin to be a main part of my party with Kapri and Marah as backup in case we needed help. We headed out of the house and I looked around as I walked. Because I wasn't paying attention, I didn't notice the soldier in front of me until I walked right into him, causing him to spin around.

"Not good!" Dustin cried as he took up a defensive stand. Tori followed suit grimly, grabbing her whip and snapping it harshly against the ground.

The soldier immediately raised his hands in a sign of surrender before a way too familiar voice creeped out from the obscuring helmet. "It's me, sir! It's me!" the voice of Bridge called out squeakily as he took a quick step back.

Relaxing, we put our weapons away and he immediately calmed down before saluting Kapri who stepped forward. "Got some info, sir! Timber station will be shut down shortly!"

"Major bummer!" Marah cried as she slumped a little.

"Not necessarily." Bridge said in a knowing tone. "It's not completely shut down, yet. The last train out of here is bound for East Academy."

"We're getting on board that train." I said in sheer determination.

"You're going too, right Kapri?" the under cover Owls agent asked nervously.

She nodded slowly. "Yeah. What about you, Bridge?"

"No need to worry about me!" he said cheerily. "I'll just go gather more info!"

"I promise I'll be back. You take care, ok?" she said warmly, looking worried about leaving him behind.

He nodded before dashing off and we made our way through the town. Bypassing the pub, we walked along the street until we came to the bridge, which we noticed the trains were running again. But we also noticed that they were only outbound trains.

Once we were over the bridge, a man came running up to us, and I noticed it was Billy. He'd changed into a pair of black pants with a white hoodie sweater, and a grey beret in his hair, removing his glasses. It took me a moment to recognize him.

"Billy!" Kapri cried, running forward to stand in front of him.

He grinned and waved to us all. "You need to go to East Academy, right? There's no more tickets left." he said, his grin never fading.

Marah hunced over and crouched low to the ground. "Oh, _major_ bummer!" she whined.

I noticed his look but let it pass as I grasped the hilt of my gunblade, ready to fight if we had to. "We'll do whatever it takes to get on that train." I said firmly.

Billy shook his head and laughed a little. "You won't have to do that." Digging through a pocket, he pulled out a handful of tickets and grinned even wider at us. "Lookie here! I have everyone's tickets right here!" Handing one to Kapri, he smiled warmly. "One for you."

Then he walked over to us and handed me three. "Three for you SeeD people. Here, I'll give them to your leader." And he stepped back. "And the last one's for me..."

His gaze travelled off to the side, and I followed it, noticing Tori standing there with a small smile, but I knew she felt left out.

It seemed he noticed it too, because he sighed and closed his eyes a moment before walking over and giving her a warm smile. "Go on, take it." he said, holding the last ticket out.

Tori's eyes widened and she shook her head, taking a step back. "I can't take that. It's yours!"

He pressed the ticket into her hand before backing off quickly and standing in a corner, hunching over and grabbing his stomach as he groaned in pain. "Ouch! Ouuuucchh! My stomach hurts! Just get going! The train's leaving!" he called as he leaned his head against the railing.

Tori took a few steps forward and bowed deeply, holding the ticket tightly. "Thank you." she said with sincerity.

"Billy..." Kapri walked over to him and knelt at his side, placing a hand on his back. "We're gonna see each other again, okay?" she said softly. "No matter what, you have to survive. We have to liberate Timber together, remember?"

He nodded. "I know, I know. I'll go hide in a bathroom or something." he said with a weak grin. "Now get going."

We turned and raced down the long stairs case, leading to a lower part of Timber. Running along the narrow streets, we dodged several civilians and soon made it to the station. But... Did we make it on time?

I spotted a girl standing by the edge of the alley, and with a sigh, ran over, tapping her on the shoulder to get her attention. When she turned to me, I asked her if the train to East Academy was still there, and waited with baited breath as she thought about it for a moment.

"The...last train? It's gonna leave real soon." she said quickly, gesturing the way we had to go.

With a nod, I quickly thanked her before we ran off and soon made our way to the train.

"Let me double check..." I stated as we ran to the entrance. "Get off at the East Academy, go through the forest west of the station. Glabadia Garden is located nearby, is that correct?"

Tori nodded as she ran beside me. "Indeed!" she answered with a grin and raised eyebrow. "Glad we have a leader with such a good memory."

Ignoring her praise, and the fact that my face had begun to heat up, we ran aboard the train and I sighed in relief, allowing myself a moment to catch my breath. The automated voice of the train stated they were heading to Dollet, stopping off at the East Academy first, and began to shake a little as it started out.

Turning to Kapri, I felt a strange sense of needing to comfort her. "We'll..."

Of course, Marah decided to me childish at that very moment and stood in front of the locked doorway, stomping on the small mat under her feet. "Open, open, OPEN!" she yelled.

"...Make it..." I said with a roll of my eyes as Marah sighed loudly.

"Please... OPEN UP!!"

Kapri looked at me with a small smile before she began to giggle, placing one hand over her mouth and the other around her stomach.

Closing my eyes, I turned and opened them to stare at the back of Marah's head as she stared at the still locked doorway. Why she'd thought it would open was beyond me. I hadn't keyed us in yet, with the tickets, so we were locked out until I did. Shaking my head, I slapped my forehead with my hand and growled quietly to myself.

_Better let her have her way..._

If I didn't, I was sure I'd end up having to deal with her tantrums for a long time to come. So walking over to the doorway, I slipped our tickets into the slot, one at a time, until we were all confirmed passengers and the door slid open.

Marah turned to me and grinned as she pumped a fist into the air. "Thanks!" she cried before giggling and running into the hallway beyond.

"Weren't you just saying something?" Kapri asked softly.

I turned and looked at her a moment before sighing. "Well...we made it."

Tori nodded seriously, guilt lurking in her eyes. "I have Billy to thank for that."

"He's into Naughty Magazines." Kapri said with a odd look on her face as she broke out into giggles.

Raising an eyebrow, Tori nodded. "I see... I'll keep that in mind." she responded in a disturbed tone.

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You'll probably notice this is mostly in Shane's POV. That's because the game was done with Squall as the Hero, and thus any narration or thoughts were his. So I find it easier to do it in his POV, but like my other stories, I try to change every now and then to add a little variation.

Hmmm... Just a little fact... Remember the dreamworld with Tommy, Jason and Zack? It'll happen a few more times at least, and you'll find out what's going on currently with them, a lot later. I tried to put a lot of the characters in roles that seemed to fit them well, so I didn't think of the pairings. I guess... Just keep in mind this is _really_ AU. Most of the main characters will have pairings I meant them with, but back characters... Merrick, Tommy, Kim and Kat... They won't.

Oh and... has anyone figured ou the link between Kapri and Kimberly? A cookie to those that do. Look over the dreamworld chapter, and the introduction to Kapri chapter to find out. Also... there's a link between Kat, Tommy and the red headed girl I've introduced twice already. Keep an eye out for that. LOL

And yes, the Naughty Magazine comment is very real. I'm not calling Billy a pervert... Really, I'm not.

Hope you liked it.

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"I, I'm worried about Balamb Garden. If anything happens, it's all my fault. I'm the one who said we were all from Garden... You think the President will retaliate against Garden?"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	12. Galbadia Garden, DreamWorld

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

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(East Academy)

The rest of the train ride was made in silence and before we knew it, we were at East Academy. It was just a small outdoor dropoff point for Garden students and such. Since the Garden was so close, they just walked through the forest to get to it. Any battles they faced, added to experience.

Disembarking from the train, we left the station and walked to the forest. The walk was pretty uneventful, facing us with easy monsters to kill and more magics to draw, though they were still weak ones. It took us a few hours before we made it into the forest, and I immediately stopped as I recognized it.

_No way... This is... This is the same forest that I saw in my dream!_

I chanced a glance to Marah and Dustin and noted that they showed the same signs of recognition, but it was only faint since the current situation was more important at the moment.

Marah turned back to us with a worried frown. "Heeey, I was thinking..."

_For once..._ I thought dryly.

"There might be some bad news from the Galbadian Government. What if we get caught and then broadcast to the whole world...?"

She trailed off but her obvious worry was still clearly seen in her eyes. It made sense. We betrayed the Galbadian Government, so what reason would Galbadia Garden have to take us in as refugees? We could be captured and executed for treason.

"Whatever happens, happens!" Dustin stated firmly, his guilty look growing ten-fold. "Now come on! Let's keep going!" His anxious look increased and his eyes narrowed as they filled with fear. "I, I'm worried about Balamb Garden. If anything happens, it's all my fault. I'm the one who said we were all from Garden... You think the President will retaliate against Garden?"

Marah looked thoughtful. "Hmmm...Maybe..."

He let his head drop. "...Figures..." he mumbled. Suddenly lashing forward, he ran to my side and gripped the sleeve of my jacket tightly. I shook my arm, but there was no dislodging him. "B-But, we have a whole bunch of SeeDs at Balamb Garden! They wouldn't lose to the Galbadian army, would they?"

I thought about it and as much as I didn't want to admit it... "Depends on how strong the army is." Galbadia was one of the largest cities in all of Gaia, second only to Esthar, but no one ever heard from people from Esthar, so Galbadia was considered the stronest empire around. It easily had the compacity to put together an army that would take over Garden in a matter of seconds.

Letting go of me reluctantly, Dustin sighed and moved away. "I know, but..."

"Oh, you're just a _great_ leader, aren't you?" Kapri snapped sarcastically, glaring at me. "Do you actually have fun being so callous to your comrads?" she demanded with her hands on her hips.

_Not again!_ I thought in irritation.

"Dustin wants your support!"

_I figured it'd be something like this._ Why was it Kapri always seemed to be preaching about something or another with me?

"Any kind of encouragement will make..."

I toned her out as I thought to myself. _That's just to ease your mind. Am I the only one who thinks like that?_ I bit back the urge to shake my head, knowing she'd get on my case about it, taking it the wrong way. _No, I'm sure Blake..._

"Don't you ever worry or think about the well-bing of your comrades?!"

_I don't believe in relying on others..._ It only caused me pain in the past.

"Don't you understand:?!" she cried angrily.

I remained silent. _...Whatever..._

"Are you even listening?!"

Suddenly, I felt a familiar buzzing and dizziness in my head and staggered forward, grabbing my head. _No... Not again... This sensation..._ Before I could say a word, I felt my world turn black and collapsed on the ground.

(Normal POV)

"Uhh..." Tori grabbed her head before she too, passed out.

Staggering forward, Marah yawned and winced a little. "M...Me, too..." Then she collapsed last.

"What's going on?!" Kapri demanded in a panic as she ran to Shane's side, feeling for a pulse and feeling quite relieved when she felt a strong one on the side of his neck.

Dustin crouched next to Marah and checked her pulse as well, before sighing and turning to Kapri. "I think...they went to the 'dream world'." he said with a frown.

(Dream World)

Three men stood at the top of a steep hill, looking out over a path that descended rapidly below them, disappearing around a corner. Beyond the path was a good 60 foot drop to a deep, fast flowing river below that was fed by a large dam.

"Zack, you sure this is the place?" Jason asked in confusion, looking out over the path below them. It certainly didn't _look_ like the destination on the map they had been carrying.

Zack looked closely at the ground below them before nodded, a determined look in his eyes. "Positive." he said, sheathing his daggers on his hips.

Smirking a little, Jason shook his head. "I don't wanna be patrolling the wrong place, like last time." The end of that sentence was directed at Tommy with a raised eyebrow.

Checking the map he held, Tommy scratched the back of his head nervously before tucking it away int one of the pockets on his uniform. Turning to his friends, he ducked his head and offered a sheepish and apologetic grin. "Uh, sorry. This ain't the place."

Shaking his head, Zack sighed. "This is it." he insisted firmly. "Let's go, _commander_." he said pointedly.

"I have a baaad feeling about this, guys." Tommy pointed out nervously. "There's something fishy goin' on here! You know what the old folks say... They unfamiliar always happens..."

"You mean, 'unexpected', right?" Zack pointed out with a raised eyebrow.

"You only got the 'un' part right." Jason muttered with a chuckle.

"Ahh, shut up!" their leader cried in embarrassment. "Stop your clamourin' and make sure you got everything. Now, let's move out!"

Running forward, they snuck their way down the path and around the corner, walking along until they came to a huge, and I mean _massive_ rock structure of some kind. It was in a square shape with rounded edges, and was made of a translucent green crystal, seeming to be a good mile thick. It towered over them easily, probably higher than any building on Gaia, and seemed to resonate with an almost evil aura.

Something was _definitely_ wrong with this picture!

This..._thing_ didn't look like anything ever made on the planet, and ahead of them was an opening that looked like it took ages to cut. It was crude and rough, but easily large enough to fit a large vehicle.

They stood on a large metal platform, and it branched off in three different directions, probably three different entrances into...well, whatever this thing was.

_All I know is that Esthar really seems to have a penchant for getting in over their heads and dealing with unusual, and at times dangerous, experiments._ Tommy thought darkly, shivering unconsciously at the power this thing seemed to radiate. _This can't be good._ "This place sure is strange. What the heck _is_ this big pile of rocks?" Looking to nearby, regular rocks, he frowned. "You think these are natural rocks for carvin; tombstones?"

Now _there_ was a morbid thought!

"Who knows...or cares?" Zack asked in a bored tone, shrugging as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Speaking of strange... Why have you been...running around so strange?" Jason asked hesitantly.

'Strange? What do you mean, strange?" Tommy asked in confusion. "Just bein' cautious. That's the basic rule of the-hey!"

Suddenly, soldiers ran out of the entrance to the rock in front of them, wielding odd-looking gunds in a bow shape that had a wire attacked to a small pack on their backs. Their armor was grey and white with linings of silver and blue, and the helmets almost had bug-like visors on them.

"Looks like we've got company." he said as he pulled out his standard issue shotgun. "Esthar Soldiers. Still wearin' those flashy uniforms."

Behind Tommy, Zack sensed something and spun around to face two more Esthar soldiers with a strange monster with them. It waved it's really long arms almost hypnotically, and seemed to have a rather round, bulbous body and a small head built into it.

Seeing Zack whirl around, Jason followed him and his eyes widened at the soldiers behind them. "Tommy!" he shouted.

"Don't be such a wimp!" Tommy called out before turning and his whole body stiffened. "Huh...?"

They were cut off. Nowhere to go, but a deadly drop into the ravine below. Soldiers blocking both ways. The only way out was to fight...

Engaging the first group of soldiers in battle, Tommy struck first. He grabbed grappling gun and shot the hook into a high tree branch overhead before jumping up and swinging into the air, firing wildly amongst the monster and soldiers.

Following his lead, Zack charged up a Blizzaga and cast it on the monster, taking it out quickly.

Jason drew Curaga magic from one of the soldiers before running forward with his massive spear and swinging forward, cutting the soldier across the chest and sending him flying over the edge of the railing and into the ravine.

A loud, terrified scream was heard as the man fell before a sickening crack and rather wet sounding gurgle. Then, silence, and all three men winced at what they knew had happened.

Still, they weren't safe yet. Finishing off the last soldier with a Firaga, the three turned to the trio of soldiers blocking their way into the massive stone...thing, and raised their weapons again.

"Wasn't our mission just to patrol...?" Zack asked with a hint of guilt.

Jason nodded. "Why does it have to turn out like this...?"

"Seriously." Tommy agreed with narrowed eyes. "I wasn't expecting this at all!"

The last three soldiers rushed forward, and a hail of bullets from Tommy's gun sent another one flying over the railing and to a rocky and watery grave. They winced again at the sound before keeping up their attack.

Jason ran forward with his spear and swung it at the stomach of one of the remaining soldiers, only to have it blocked, but kicking out, he knocked the gun from the foe's hand before striking again and slashing the unarmed enemy across the stomach.

Zaxk finished him off with a Death spell, a ghostly grim reaper forming in front of the soldier to literally suck the life out of him. And then cast a Firaga at the remaining soldier with a grim expression.

Tommy used his shotgun and fired another hail of bullets into the man's chest and he fell, leaving the three alone on that deck with at least two dead bodies on either side of them.

Jason quickly turned back and frowned as they all heard the sound of rapid moving footsteps descending the steep slope a little ways behind them. "There's more coming...?"

"There's no end to this!" Zack shouted.

"Better make a run for it!" Tommy finished as they sprinted into the opening of the massive rock.

Running along a seemingly neverending tunnel, they all noted the eery green light it gave off. It was fain, so electric lights had been installed, but it ws noticeable nonetheless. Also, the crystal they'd seen outside, seemed to make up the inside as well.

Or...what they could see of it.

With the size of this thing, it would take them hours to get to the other side, and that was only giving that they knew where the right paths were.

Turning a corner, they saw more of those strange monsters creeping around with Esthar soldiers rushing here and there. There was no way they were going to get out of this thing without a fight.

At least they managed to sneak past the first set of guards, and ran down another hallway, finding a lower one below that almost seemed abandoned. It was darker and narrower with a lack of monsters and soldiers. As they walked along, Tommy spotted something shining in the light and walked over to it. "What's this...?" he mused out loud, bending down to pick it up. It was clearly an old key of some kind and had a small 'A' on the front. "Better put this someplace safe." he said quietly, placing it in the back pocket of his pants.

Standing back up, he frowned when he felt something strange. _I feel a draft...on my butt._ Patting the pocket he'd just put the key in, his eyes widened as he felt a small whole. "T-There's a hole in my pocket!" he cried as he felt around for the key. Feeling nothing there, he dropped to his knees and began digging through the debris on the ground, trying to find the key he'd just dropped.

After about ten minutes of searching, he sighed. _Can't find it..._ "Ahh well, it's not like I'm gonna die." he said with a shrug as they continued on.

They made it through a few more tunnels before finding a set of switches on the ground with different colored cords leading from them. One was red with a shorter cord, leading to a nearby boulder, and the other was blue with a much longer cord. Tommy guessed that it also led to a boulder.

"Hey, man...! Are you crazy?!" Jason yelped as Tommy knelt next to the detonator. "You don't even know how powerful that thing will be!!"

Waving a hand in a dismissing mannor, Tommy shrugged. "Ah, I bet it's not all that bad." he said idly. "The detonator's right here and as long as we stay behind it, we'll be ok."

"...I guess so." Jason admitted reluctantly.

Pressing the blue switch, Tommy realized how close the boulder was and yelped in fear. "It's gonna blow! Run for it!" he cried as they took off towards the end of the tunnel and up a flight of stairs. After a moment, when there was no explosion to be heard, Tommy frowned and went back down, watching as the said boulder rolled across the ground, a poor Esthar soldier running for his life right in front of it, screaming in terror.

"That was...awfully quiet." Zack pointed out with a confused frown.

Jason nodded. "I was expecting a blast of some sort..."

"See?" Tommy cried triumphantly. "I told you! I told you it wouldn't be that powerful!"

Racing back to the detonator, he bent down and pressed the red switch, relaxing as he noticed the others seemed noticed. "Relax. The bomb blast won't reach us here. Just stay put."

Suddenly, the entire hallway shook with a violent blast, and bits of crystal from the roof fell to the ground.

"W-What?" Tommy stuttered as the trio struggled to keep their balance.

Another boulder was seen crossing a path, another solder screaming and running for his life in front of it. Then there was a loud crash and the trio winced and paled, remembering that down that pathway, there were no side tunnels or stairs.

It had been a dead end.

"That was...awfully loud." Zack commented.

Jason shot Tommy a mild glare. "Lucky we were here."

"Well, uhh... That's what I told you before!" Tommy quickly excused himself. "You always check how powerful the things could be!"

Raising his eyebrow, Jason folded his arms over his chest and glared at Tommy. "Wasn't that..._me_ who said that?"

"Uh, well...Umm... A-Anyways, we're still alive...right?!" he demanded.

Walking off, they climbed the stairs again and noticed they seemed to be at a type of lookout point. The crystal walls blended from a lime green to a hot pink as it neared the outside wall of this point, and a few metallic monsters could be seen floating by. They were obviously machines, having long, elastic legs and shooting beams at points in the walls.

Carefully making their way across a _very_ long man-made path, they battled a few of those things before making it to the other side.

...Only to find themselves facing a _steep_ cliff and very deadly drop to the ocean below. At least, the water was deep enough, so there was a chance of surviving if one fell. But it was a _slim_ chance!

"Don't tell me..." Tommy began.

"Of all the worst possible..." Jason continued with an almost defeated look.

Zack sighed and let his head drop. "...Predicaments?"

Hearing footsteps behind them, the trio spun to find themselves face-to-face with two Esthar soldiers and armed themselves, running forward for more room to battle in. Tommy took charge, aiming his gun and firing at the faces of the guards before grabbing one of the military issue grenades and tossing it at them, taking them both out completely.

"Ahhh! I have to go to the bathroom!" Tommy whined as three more soldiers ran forward.

Zack cast Blizzaga on one and Jason finished it off with his spear, before casting a Firaga at the other and ack ran forward to slice it's head off with his long daggers.

"Ahhh! I'm gettin' hungry!" Tommy whined again as two more and one of those blue, bulbous bodied monsters approached.

Tommy used another grenade, taking out the soldiers and wounding the monster.

Then it waved it's arms and he felt weightless. Looking down, his eyes grew wide and he yelped when he realized he was floating 5 feet in the air. That's when the monster flipped him and he crashed to the ground. He would've landed on his head, but managed to turn just enough to land on his shoulder instead and cried out as pain seared through the appendage and through his neck.

Using his good arm, he grabbed a potion and drank it swiftly, healing the damage of his broken arm and standing up quickly to fire his gun at the monster.

And a single Firaga spell finished it off.

"Darn it! I wanna scratch the bottom of my feet!" Tommy whined as a single soldier ran up to them.

Zack sighed and rolled his eyes, raising his hand to cast a Firaga, and Jason followed the gesture with a snort and casting a Thundaga. The solider fell to the ground and they sighed in relief.

Until Tommy whined yet _again_. "Uhhh! My nose itchessss!"

Three more soldiers ran at them and they readied themselves for battle, but this time, something was different. Instead of facing human soldiers, like they had been all along, they faced one human and two cyborgs.

And the Cyborgs were a _hell_ of a lot more powerful!

They could tell the cyborgs because the legs bent backwards, and they buzzed with energy.

The human soldier was easily taken care of, and Zack raced forward to slice at the cyborg on the left. It took the damage and stumbled back a foot before raising the gun and firing, but Zack was able to dodge in time.

Jason wolloed suit with a Thundaga spell, which took a chunk out of the one cyborg soldier and sent it's one arm flying, leaving behind a sparking mess of wires where it had been. Still, the solider lifted it's gun with it's remaining arm and shot at Jason, hitting him in the side.

Rushing over to his injured friend's side, Tommy pulled out a potion and handed it to him, watching as he drank it and straightened up with a relieved look on his face. Then he aimed his gun, using the grappling gun to hang in the air above the soldiers and fire upon them. Landing on his feet, he pulled out another genade and tossed it at them, finally taking out one of the soldiers.

That's when the other began to beep loudly and the body began to visibly vibrate with energy. The visor glowed a bright yellow, and it held up it's gun, shooting out beams of energy that hit Zack and then Jason, knocking them down.

Tommy realized he was all alone, and that thing was aiming at him. Before it could shoot him however, he grabbed the last two of his grenades, tossing one, waiting as it exploded and then tossing the other and watching in relief as it took out the soldier for good.

Checking on his friends, he noticed that they were still alive.

..._Barely._

Their pulses were weak, but amazingly, they were still conscious. Jason looked Tommy in the eyes and opened his mouth to say something, but only a garbled croak came out and he closed it again, wincing in pain and managing to move his arm to his throat, holding it tightly.

_Damn!_ Looking around, Tommy pulled out a potion and used it on Jason, but frowned in worry when he realized it wasn't working. Narrowing his eyes, he soon saw the cliff again and an idea hit him. If they couldn't go back the way they had come, then they'd just have to chance it.

"Look, the ocean... We're saved!" he said as cheerfully as he could, trying to pick up Jason and Zack's spirits. He carried one, and then the other, to the very edge and looked out over it. "Lady luck is on our side! We can escape to Galbadia!"

"One would say we were run down..." Zack put in weakly with a smirk. "That's what they'd normally say..."

Sighing, he frowned. "Don't say that. It might come true. Didn't your grandmother tell you that?"

"...If you say something bad..." Zack repeated the words he'd heard so long ago. "...It will come true... Yeah, I think she did."

"It...fu...uys..." Jason managed to croak.

Looking at him, I frowned and leaned down. "What'd you say?"

"I think...his throat...was damaged."

They were getting weaker by the moment.

"It...was...fun, gu...uys...T...omm...y... Z...ack... It...w...as...fun..." Jason croaked as his eyes closed. A moment later and he opened them, managing a weak smile.

_No._ Tommy shook his head, fighting back tears. Why did this happen? His two best friends were laying there, dying, and he felt so helpless! "Jason, that's way uncool. It's not cool to say things like that." Turning back out to the water, he felt his eyes widen when he saw a ship gliding slowly across the water. "WHOA! Check it out, a boat! We're getting on!"

"A...vessel...they'd normally...call it." Zack corrected him weakly.

"Psshht! Boat, vessel, whatever!" Tommy scoffed. "We're going back to Galbadia!"

Reaching down, he helped Zack to his feet and walked him right to the edge before backing up and pushing him off the edge. Then he repeated the process with Jason. Finally, looking out over the edge, he winced. "You guys...sure have guts." he muttered. "You know how high this cliff is?!"

Turning his back to the cliff, he set his legs over the edge and found places to sit them. Putting his weight on them as he began to climb down, one gave way, and before he knew it, he was falling to the ocean below.

"Oh, sh...! ...no way... AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

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Ok, you'll notice there was no Shane's thoughts in the Dream world. I don't know why, but I think it's because he had a vague idea that it was the Dream World, and remained silent while Tommy and the others fought and whatnot.

Tommy sure seems mean and like an airhead... That's not the case. He knew more soldiers would come and that his friends wouldn't jump on their own. So rather than stay and argue about it, he pushed them off before slipping himself.

You think it's the end of him and them? Jason and Zack were in pretty bad shape... Well, you'll see. (grins evilly)

Hope you like it. I tried my best on these fight scenes, but was tired and was in a hurry to get this chapter done so I could post it and go to bed.

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"Was it Tommy again...?"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi.


	13. Second Mission, Part 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : I bet you're all wondering where Hunter is, huh? Well, I'll warn you now that were won't be any 'brotherly love' between him and Blake, since Blake is a main antagonist through most of the fic. But if you'd like to know, he comes in next chapter.

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(End of Dream World, Shane's POV)

Shaking my head as I slowly stood up, I waited a moment as the dizziness faded before opening my eyes to find Dustin pacing in the forest and Kapri looking at me in relief. I looked to Marah and Tori and watched as they woke up, realizing they must've been there with me. I knew that their minds were inhabiting the bodies of Zack and Jason, I just didn't know who was who.

"Was it Tommy again...?" Dustin asked knowingly, seeming to have calmed down somewhat from his fear of Balamb Garden being destroyed by Galbadia.

Marah nodded. "Sir Tommy's in _big_ trouble! I hope he'll be ok...!!"

"Doesn't seem like the first time for you all." Tori mused as she straightened her hair and outfit, checking to make sure she still had her whip. "What is this?"

_If it were just me, I could tell the others it was all just a crazy dream..._ "We'll just be wasting our time trying to figure it out. Let's keep going." I suggested.

"Yeah, let's go!" Dustin cried with a grin. "We're almost there!"

Marah, Dustin and Tori headed off, deeper into the woods, leaving Kapri and I alone. Once they were out of earshot, she turned to me and bit her lip. "Um, Shane? I think I may have said too much. I'm sorry." she apologized before racing off.

Frowning to myself, I nodded. Why couldn't I stay mad at her? Shaking my head, I watched her retreating figure before running after her and the others. _Forget about it..._

(Galbadia Garden)

We made it to the Garden in no time. The Forest had been fairly easy to deal with, since most of the monsters were fairly easy. Then again, I said _most_. There were a few giant man-eating plants with spiked tentacles called Ochus, and some monster that strange resembled smaller, green and blue dragons with straight tails that had sharp edges on either side.

Yeah, well, we ran from them.

Walking into the Galbadia Garden's entrance, I noticed that it seemed bigger then Balamb, and was set up much differently. The outdoor section we walked along had many students walking to and from the Garden, and some even flew in strange, flying machines, a dark green color. The machines seemed to mostly surround them with arm controls, and gatling guns.

I'd never seen anything like it before.

I think, I would've been suspicious if it hadn't been for the fact that the students in them wore orange jump suits, showing that they were only in a class.

Also, the uniforms were different...a little. Definitely more...flashy than ours, but basically the same colors and such. The guys had the navy blue uniforms, and so did the woman, with them having the choice of a shot, medium or long skirt.

"Wow...completely different." Marah mused in awe.

Dustin nodded with an impressed look. "Sure is quiet."

Shrugging, I smirked. "...I like it." I said easily. _Quiet. I prefer quiet, so yeah, I like this Garden._

Of course, Kapri seemed to _love_ my comment and began to giggle as she held her stomach.

With a determined nod, Tori turned to me and offered a somewhat uncertain smile. "Could you leave this one up to me? I've been here several times, and I know the headmaster very well. I'll go and explain our situation."

As Tori left and walked into the Garden, I watched as the others all seemed clueless as to what to actually do. I could tell from the way they stayed near me that they'd chosen to pretty much follow my lead.

"It's totally different from Balamb and Trabia Gardens!" Marah said, still in awe as she checked out the place.

Staying where we were for a while, I eventually got tired or waiting and headed into the Garden to look around. Speaking to many students and faculty, many of them just told us useless information or not to bother their class.

Walking up behind two girls that were walking down the hall, I slowed and walked behind them, listening in to what they were saying.

"You hear about the sorceress being appointed ambassador? Well, I hear there's gonna be an Inauguration Ceremony pretty soon." one girl said to the other.

The othe girl nodded. "I heard the sorceress has the ability to brainwash people. I wonder if it's true...?"

With a nod, I filed that little bit of information away and headed off, making my way back to the main hall of the Garden, which was in a circular shape and had four exits from it. It also had a second floor above it, and in the center of the room, a bright beam of light shot down from a skylight, and I saw the faint glowings of a draw point. Walking over, I drew Double from it and waited as Marah, Kapri and Dustin did the same before the draw point emptied.

Double is pretty much what it sounds like. It allows someone to cast twice the magic every time they have to cast a spell. There's also a spell out there called Triple but it's very rare that you run into either a draw point or a monster that carried that spell.

"Attention, SeeD part from Balamb, please report to the 2F Reception Floor."

Turning to the others, I nodded and began to search our way to the said point. It probably would've been easier if we'd known anything about this Garden, but since we did, it was a trial and error thing. Searching many corridors, we ended up back in the main hall a few times before we finally found the place we were looking for.

Heading into the large, lavish room, we each relaxed the best we could. Marah paced by the large window, staring out it. Kapri sat on the couch, pulling her legs up to her chest again and placing her head on her knees. Dustin sat on a couch across from her with a worried look, and I stood by the side of the doorway, my arms crossed over my chest and leaning against the wall.

"I wonder if there's a Garden Festival here, too." Marah mused out loud, looking lost in her thoughts.

Kapri nodded. "So Tori attended classes here?" she asked me.

I shrugged and remained silent. I mean, I didn't know, why was she asking me?

"How long are they gonna make us wait?" Dustin muttered as he nervously shook his leg.

A few minutes later and Tori walked in looking triumphant. Everyone turned to her with expectant looks as she moved to stand by the coffee table in the middoe of the couches.

"How'd it go?" I asked curiously.

She grinned. "They understood our situation." Then she turned to Dustin and bent down to look him in the eyes. "And Balamb Garden is _safe_. The attack on the President in Timber, was classified as an independent action. There was an official notice from the Galbadia Government saying that Balamb Garden is not to be held responsible."

"So... Blake's taking all the blame?" he asked hesitantly, looking torn between jumping for joy or feeling guilty all over again.

She turned grim at this. "The trial's over and the sentence's been carried out."

Everyone's face paled at this and I felt my legs grow weak. Taking a step back, I casually leaned against the wall and frowned deeply as the silence reigned in the room.

_Blake...dead? No, that's not right. _I almost grinned at the thought if I didn't feel so worried. _Blake wouldn't stand for that._ He would've found a way out is what he would've done. But still, the thought that he was dead... I never hated him, I don't know why I fought him. Maybe because it almost seemed like a habit. To hear that he'd been... It didn't seem possible.

"...He was executed?" Kapri asked softly, tears filling her eyes as she stared at Tori, hugging her legs even tighter to her chest as she looked down and her hair fell into her face, obscuring our vision of it. "...Of course he was. He attacked the President. He...He sacrificed himself for the Forest Owls..." she muttered brokenly.

Tori pursed her lips before sitting beside Kapri. "It was your group that got him involved in all this." Her tone was sad, but held no accusation. It was simply making a statement. "You're a resistance faction, right? You must have been prepared for the worst. I'm sure Blake was prepared, too." she winced at saying his name but managed to keep her composure. "So don't think of it as Blake sacrificing himself for you."

Getting up, Tori shook her head. "I'm sorry. I'm not good at this. I guess that wasn't much consolation."

"You really hated Blake, didn't you Dustin?!" Marah yelled angrily.

He looked hurt at this and let his head drop as he nodded before shaking his head. "Yeah, but... He was from Garden... He was one of us... If I can, I wanna get revenge."

At that, Marah looked apologetic and sighed with a sad expression on her face.

"I...don't have any good memories of him." Tori looked ready to break. Tears filled her eyes and she scrubbed tiredly at her pale face with the heels of her hands. "I've seen some troubled kids, but he was beyond troubled. Well, he wasn't really a bad guy."

I let my head drop, listening to them talk about him like he was dead. Something told me he wasn't and I knew he wouldn't go that easily, and yet they all already believed he was gone and wasn't coming back. Was this how they'd act if I was to die? No, I shook my head, not wanting to think about that. For one thing, I'm not even close to any of them, so they wouldn't mourn, and another, I wouldn't _want_ them talking about me like this!

"I...really liked him." Kapri said with a shaky voice, wiping away tears as she smiled weakly. "He was really full of confidence, smart... Just by talking to him, I felt like I could take on the world."

Tori shot a small, surprised look at Kapri before nodding and looking thoughtful.

"You're boyfriend?" Marah asked curiously.

I frowned behind their backs at that. Why did I feel jealous when that was brought up? She could date whoever she wanted and I wouldn't care. No, I _would_ but I shouldn't. Closing my eyes I sighed silently and refused to think about it.

"I don't really know." she admitted with a small smile, pain and confusion overcoming her face. "I...I think I was in love." She winced a little at saying that and I caught the brief, pained glance she sent in my direction before she buried her face in her legs again. "I...wonder how fe felt...?" she finished quietly.

"Do you still like him?" Marah continued.

Glaring at her a moment, Kapri closed her eyes and sighed. "If I didn't, I wouldn't be talking about it. It was only about two weeks ago... I was...new to the area..."

Toning her out, I bit my lip. '_I liked him'...' He wasn't a bad guy'... 'He was one of us'._ They already accepted him as dead, and I didn't know _what _to think. I snorted silently and offered a pained, half smirk. _Blake...you've already becoming nothing but a memory._

Then I frowned deeply and felt my heart clench painfully. _Will they...Will they talk about me this way if I die...? 'Shane was this and that'. Using past tense, saying whatever they want? So... This is what death is all about..._ I watched as they clearly mourned someone who might still be alive. As they gave up hope and decided not to even look or find out for sure.

They just gave up!

They're just going to leave him, possibly alive, alone. I shook my head violently at this and pushed off the wall with a deadly glare. _...Not for me... I WON'T HAVE IT!!!_

"Shane? What's wrong?" Tori asked in worry, standing up as I noticed everyone was staring at me in worry and confusion.

I didn't care. "I won't have it!" I yelled, swinging my arm in front of me and pushing her back when she tried to approach. _I won't have it! I won't let you get close to me and just give up on me at the first sign of trouble! You'll just abandon me! _

_I won't be abandoned!_

_Not again!!_

"W-What?" Dustin asked in confusion.

Marah Stared at me with wide, shocked eyes. "Have you gone _mad_?!" she shouted.

I glared at all of them. "I won't have anyone talking about me in past tense!" _I won't let you in!_

Running out of the room, I raced past multiple Galbadian SeeDs until I made it into the main hall, where I was stopped by an unexpected voice and froze, spinning around and looking up to the second floor to see who called me.

"Yo! Shane!"

Above me stood Eric and Taylor. They looked around and looked confused before exchanging glances and shrugged, turning and running off and soon appearing through the doorway in front of me.

"What're you doing here?" I demanded in confusion. _Blake's lackeys. They might not know... Great, and I'll be the one who has to tell them, won't I?_

"What am I doin'?! I'm a messenger, ya know?" Eric cried with a crooked grin. "Brought a new order from Headmaster Kanoi, ya know."

_A new order. Could be just what everyone needs to take their minds off... But... _"What kind of order?"

He shrugged at this. "I dunno. Gave it to the head honch here. Just did what the Headmaster wanted, ya know?"

Taylor slapped him on the arm and nodded. "EXPLAIN."

Scratching the back of his head, he nodded in return. "We were suppose'ta go to Timber, but the trains aren't running. So we had no other choice but to come here. Kinda relieved to see you guys here."

"BLAKE?" Taylor asked expectantly.

I felt my eyes widen at this and sighed sadly. With the news going around, I could tell them the truth of what I thought, but would they listen? Would they believe me? "I think he may be dead... I heard he was tried in Galbadia and then executed..." I said simply. _Let them draw their own conclusions._

"LIES!" Taylor yelled with a grin.

I felt my head shoot up and watched as the duo seemed nothing but amused by the news.

Eric even began to laugh and Taylor shook her head with a grin. "That's gotta be a lie, ya know? There's no way he'd put up with a trial, ya know?! Or an execution for that matter! It's just not Blake, ya know?" Eric gasped between breaths.

Looking away, I almost felt relieved that someone else felt the same way as me. Somehow, sitting patiently at a trial and then waiting calmly for them to kill him, _didn't_ seem like the Blake I knew.

"FIND!"

I turned back as Taylor got a serious, determined look on her face. Eric took one look at her and nodded with a grin of his own.

I always felt respect for them, and this made that respect grow. Unlike a lot of people, they've always stood by Blake's side and were there for him. They were true friends. Even in the face of his possible death, they refused to believe it and were about to go searching for him. With a nod, I mentally wished them luck.

I also knew that they wouldn't return to Balamb. The only reason they stayed there was for Blake, and with him gone, they had no reason to remain.

Watching as they left, I allowed myself a small smile as I thought to myself about how lucky Blake was, to have such good friends. No matter what, they'd never just abandon him.

"Attention, SeeD party from Balamb, please assemble in front of the main gate."

Looking to the speaker I sighed and turned, heading for the main entrance and knowing I'd have to deal with my teammates. Making it to the reception area, I spotted Tori who walked over with a look of concern towards me before she sighed. "Ok, it's time to meet. Let's go."

We ran out to the main entry where the others waited for us and rejoined them.

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I'm nearing the end of the first quarter of the script. Hmmm... a new mission.

I tried to jump into Squall's head to get these thoughts for Shane, and I hope it _slightly_ explained why he's colder to other people.

Hope you like it.

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"This is Hunter Bradley. He will be your sharpshooter."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	14. Second Mission, Part 2

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : I had to age Merrick for his role. Sorry everyone for making him seem so old. LOL. But you'll see why.

**JuseaPeterson** - Honestly, you're guess is as good as mine to which guys Dustin and Marah were in, in the first Dream World. Later on though, there will be another one, and they'll mention who they were with afterwards. I'm glad you like the fic. :)

**Ultimuus** - I'm glad you like it. This is my third Power rangers/Final Fantasy crossover, and I seem a little stuck on this type of thing. LOL. Who knows? Maybe I'll do another crossover with the script to Final Fantasy 7 with another Ninja Storm pairing. I don't know yet. LOL.

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"He's pretty late." Marah stated, looking at a watch she wore.

Kapri, who had been sitting on a post on the railing, got up and looked at me before gesturing with her head to an approaching vehicle. "Oh! I think that's him. Just pretend I'm a SeeD. It'll be less complicated that way." she said.

As the car approached, we all fanned out into a straight line, two feet apart from each other and stood at attention. I caught Kapri looking at us in confusion a moment before jumping to the end of the line and quickly following our example, though she looked nervous as she did so.

Pulling over to the side, the car stopped and a young man with blonde hair that was slicked back, exited. Immediately, we all saluted him in sync, and I caught Kapri doing the same a moment later. _She's not gonna pull this off if she doesn't pay more attention._ I thought darkly. But then again, without our training, she had no idea what to do.

This must've been Galbadia Garden's Headmaster, Tyzonn.

"Good day." the man said formally. "I have official orders from Headmaster Kanoi, addressed to you. Following the regulations, I have gone over these orders. After careful consideration of our options, we have decided to fully assist and cooperate with Headmaster Kanoi. Actually, we too, have been planning this for quite some time. In order to stress the importance of this mission, I must first brief you on the current situation. At ease."

We all relaxed and Kapri did so as well, again a second later.

"You all know about the sorceress being appointed as the peace ambassador for the Galbadian Government. However, this ambassador thing is just a cover-up. There will be no peace talks, only threats. The sorceress creates fear amongst the people. Therefore, peace talks are impossible. It's clear that Galbadia's ultimate goal is world domination. Garden is no exception, either."

I frowned at this. Did this mean that we couldn't trust him, or anyone here?

"It is a fact that sorceress is planning to use this Garden as her base. ...We have very few options available to us. We entrust world peace, the future, to you. Details of the mission are enclosed in this file." He handed over the file to me, and I read over it briefly, raising my eyebrow at what I saw. "Any questions?"

"The order says 'by means of a sniper'. We have no one with that skill." I stated calmly.

Tyzonn nodded slowly. "Don't worry about it. Let me introduce an elite sharpshooter from Galbadia Garden. Bradley! Hunter Bradley!" he called.

We all turned in the direction he looked, to find someone lying on the grass. He wore a long black trenchcoat and a cowboy hat on his head. His arm was up with a single finger pointing to the sky, and we watched silently as a butterfly flew by and landed on the finger. Pulling his thumb back slowly, he made a motion, like he just fired a gun, and the butterfly flew off.

Leaning up, I should see that he had short, shaggy blonde hair and blue eyes. Then, as he stood, I watched as he placed a rifle on his shoulders and sauntered over coolly. He was wearing black leather pants with a dark crimson shirt under his coat, and he stared at Tyzonn emotionlessly as he stood by our group.

"This is Hunter Bradley. He will be your sharpshooter. Leave whenever you are ready. Failure is not an option." the Headmaster said firmly before turning and disappearing in to the car, and it pulled away.

Aiming his finger behind the guy's back, Hunter smirked and did the same thing as he did when the butterfly landed on his hand. "Bang!" he called as the car drove off.

Turning to us, Hunter raised an eyebrow and grinned, taking a moment to check out Marah, Tori and Kapri. "Looks like I'm with you newbys from Balamb. Greetings."

Dustin began to shake in a barely suppressed rage and I sighed. _Dustin... Why must you always overreact to everything?_

"You ok with me helping you?"

I sighed and stared firmly at the newest addition to our group. _Not like we have a choice._ "That depends on your attitude."

He simply shrugged and grinned. "I say things that get a rise out of people. Just don't let it bother you and we'll get along fine."

_I shouldn't put him together with Dustin... _"I'll remember that."

Sighing with worry, I took another look at the new orders before frowning and calling everyone over. "Our new orders... This is no ordinary mission. It's a direct order from both Balamb and Galbadia Gardens. We're to..." I hesitated a moment. Why didn't any of this seem right? "...Assasinate the sorceress." I finally finished, noting how the others looked confused and worried. "We're to shoot her from afar. Bradley will be the sharpshooter. We're to support Bradley to our fullest. Should the sniper fail, we are to attack head on." I said firmly, though I felt that somehow, we were walking into a trap.

Hunter snorted and rolled his eyes at the last comment. "Thanks for the support." he said sarcastically. "But I never miss my target."

"Eliminate the sorceress. That's our order." I said firmly to the others, ignoring Hunter. "We're going to head to the capital of Galbadia, Deling City. There we're going to meet up with General Merrick Baliton to go over the details for the plan. Let's go."

"Well then, we'll need to chose a main party for the trip." Hunter stated with a sly look to the girls. Grabbing Kapri and Marah's arms, he dragged them over to stand beside me and shot me a grin. "How's this?"

"...That's no good." I stated. _No way in hell would he be concentrating on the mission if he took them with him._ With a sigh, I chose Kapri and Marah to stay with me and put Dustin and Tori with Hunter. I knew putting Dustin with Hunter wasn't the wisest choice, but if anything happened, Tori would be able to keep them in order.

"WHAT?!" Hunter yelled angrily. "Are you serious?!"

I shrugged and nodded. "I've balanced out the party." I explained. _Besides, it's not like you're not gonna be able to see them. We'll only be a few feet ahead of you._

With a sigh, we headed off towards another train station nearby, heading to Deling City. We could walk, but it would take away from our remaining time before the mission was to take place. I had to listen to Hunter complaining about how he got stuck with Dustin and Tori until Tori gave him a death glare and smacked him, hard, on the head.

That certainly shut him up, but he kept glaring at me the rest of the way.

Once we made it there, I paid for our ticket and boarded the train ahead of the others. With a groan I looked at the consol and rolled my eyes before walking over and confirming our tickets. That done, I walked over to a wall and leaned against it, watching as the others entered a moment later.

Marah's first stop was the door and she giggled as it opened automatically for her, turning to wave and give me a teasing smile. "You're catching on!" she praised before dashing through to take her usual place.

Shaking a bit, the train started up and began to head out, going to Deling City. I watched as the others seemed lost in thought before Hunter shrugged and grinned, eyeing the door like a predator. "Hmmm...maybe it's fate?" he mused to himself before sauntering through.

"So, what do we do about _him_?" Dustin asked with a growl, clearly not happy with our newest group member.

Kapri raised her hand a little and looked a little worried. "Shouldn't you go check up on Marah?"

I headed through the doorway, finding Hunter staring at hthe brunette with a wolfish grin. "Marah, we're destined to be together!" he announced dramatically.

Cutting off from her singing, she turned to stare incredulously at him before shaking her head, though her face turned beat red. "Yeah, right...!" she said shakily.

"A sigh of love?" he asked teasingly as he took a step forward.

"N-No...!" she protested.

Looking defeated, Hunter shook his head and turned around, giving me a slight glare before walking past me. "Pardon me..." he stated quietly, heading back to the others.

"My heart's pounding...what is this?" Marah asked shakily once he was gone.

Frowning, I shrugged. "It's an important mission. Get used to handling pressure while you can." I suggested, not wanting her to think of the possibility of a crush, or even love. There was no guarantee we'd succeed, let alone live, and I didn't want the added guilt of having her develop feelings for someone and then have to watch them die, or die herself.

She nodded and sighed wearily as she turned back to the window.

Heading back to the others, I watched with a growing frown as Hunter hit on Kapri next.

"Kapri..." he stated in a quiet voice, walking over to her and pausing as she ran over to Tori and half hid behind her.

That seemed to do it and Tori shook her head before placing her hands on her hips. "Hunter Bradley! You're playing a major role in this mission, so behave yourself!" she yelled sternly, making him glare at her.

Turning away, he moved to a far wall and leaned against it, looking at the ground. "No one understands me... Sharpshooters are loners by nature..." he stated calmly. "We hone our instincts, pour our whole being into a single bullet. The pressure of the moment... The instant tension... That's what...I have to face alone... It's not easy... So, like..." Raising his head, he glared at us. "Just do me a favor and let me be! You get my drift?"

_Talk about over melodramatic._ I thought dryly, raising an eyebrow and ignoring Hunter.

Dustin had enough and crouched down, punching the floor of the train as hard as he could and causing the train to puse a second and shudder before it continued on. Then there was an announcement from the conductor.

"Err, There was no damage to the train from that minor, err, vibration... I, uh, repeat... Err, There was no damage to the train from that minor, err, vibration..."

(Deling City)

We managed to make it the rest of the way to Deling before the train broke down and needed to be repaired. Apparently, the power of Dustin's punch had knocked something lose, so they needed time to service it.

Heading up a giant flight of stairs, we looked out over the massive city in front of us. I immediately recognized this place as where Tommy had parked the truck before, after returning from the Timber forest.

"Sure is a big city." Dustin said with wide eyes as he stared out over the place below us.

It was night, so it was dark, but there were so many lights, it lit up the city. I'd heard that here in Deling, the city never sleeps. Sotres are open all night and people can always be seen walking around.

"We're going to Baliton's mansion, right?" Kapri asked nervously, frowning deeply at everything around her. "Just take bus 08."

"Sounds like you know this place pretty well." Dustin said with a nod as we headed down the other side of the stairs and to the street.

I looked around closely, recalling our dream world experiences, and the fact that Deling seemed to be Tommy's home. _So this is where Tommy's from?_ I don't know what I expected, but this place seemed far more...peaceful, than I was expecting, seeing as how it's the capital city of Galbadia.

Making our way through a large park, I noticed a huge mansion across the street on the other side and approached the Galbadian soldier blocking our way.

_Baliton is the head of the Galbadian army... Could this be a coup d'etat? _I paused and watched the house for a moment before shaking my head. _No... I don't think he's out to overthrow the President._

As we walked up to the guard, he raised his hand and sighed. "General Baliton's mansion is right through this gate, but... I'm afraid I can't let you through." he said uncertainly.

"I believe he's been informed of our arrival." I said coldly, glaring at him and folding my arms over my chest.

"Yes indeed, but... I was ordered not to let you through unless your skills were tested and proven."

"What the hell's he talkin' about?" Dustin demanded angrily.

Kapri glared and sighed, shaking her head. "He's still so skeptical of people." she muttered angrily.

I heard this and shot her a confused look, noticing that Tori did the same. _She knows this General Baliton?_

"Oh really...?" Tori questioned with a confused glance of her own.

Marah stared at the guard and planted her hands on her hips. "We're SeeDs you know!"

The guard explained the mission and gave us directions. Apparently, we were to go to an ancient tomb known as the Tomb of the Unknown King, which was to the northeast, and look for any traces of a student who'd gone missing yesterday. He also warned us not to go too far into the tomb or we might never come out again. Something about powerful monsters and such.

And the ruins were like a maze, confusing and almost impossible to get out of, thus the map and guidance.

We were about to leave when he called us back and gave us a little hint about something else. Apparently, where was a GF in the ruins, known as Brothers. There wasn't much known about them, but he also gave us the hint 'stay above ground'. I had no idea what it meant, but figured we'd find out when it came to facing them.

Heading out of Deling City, we walked across the dark plains, fighting all monsters we came across and managing to draw more magics from them. Cura, Life, Fira, Blizzara, Thundara and Watera. Then there was Float.

Float is just what it said. It enabled characters to float off the ground for a short amount of time. The spell came in handy, mostly against monsters that used earthquake attacks, or if you need to float a monster off the ground to keep it from healing by using it's element.

My eyes widened as I figured it out. 'Above the ground'. It meant to use Float and keep the Brothers off the ground so they couldn't draw on the earth element to heal themselves.

(Tomb of the Unknown King)

We finally made it to the ruins and walked along the stone passage to the entrance when we had to jump to the side to avoid two terrified female students, running for their lives.

"F-Float!" one girl yelled as they ranced out of the ruins.

Frowning, I drew my gunblade and headed in. We didn't make it far before we noticed a sword and memo pad lying on the ground. The sword was a standard issue Galbadia Garden weapon, and had the ID number 081 on it. _This must be what we're looking for._ I thought as I memorized the number. Then I picked up the memo pad and read what I could make out of the writing.

"I can't take it anymore, physically or mentally. I'm not cut out to be a SeeD. This place is one big maze, full of danger. " Then there were directions on how to get out, but we weren't ready to leave yet.

Heading in, I kept my eyes out for danger, soon spotting two giant, blue slime monsters known as Gels. Fighting them off with Thundara spells, we also dealth with easy monster, Forbbidens and Creepers. Forbbiden are skeletons that can use Death magic on you to kill your whoel party with one blow, but we were lucky that these were weaker ones that didn't know the magic yet. And Creepers are shadow monsters. Since they were of the dark element, light magic worked well against them. Even though they weren't undead, Cure and Life did wonders.

Soon, we found ourselves facing the Brothers. They were two minotaur monsters. One was larger, but it turned out that, he was the younger of the two. One was tiny, maybe the size of a cat, but he was the older of the two. Weird, huh?

Well apparently, Marah said something about the smaller one being cute and they both got offended.

As the battle began, I casted Float on the monsters before Kapri drew Protect and Shell from them and cast Protect on us. Once they were floating and we were protected, we all unleashed our strongest attacks on them to take them down as fast as possible.

Dustin raced forward and delivered three punches to the face of the smaller one before running to the bigger one and doing a back flip, kicing him in the head, then he jumped into the air and pulled his fist back. I watched as it began to glow and he thrust it forward, a wave of light hitting the minotaurs.

Kapri raced forward a bit and whistled before raising her arm. A large dog came rushing out of a portal and jumped into the air, landing on her arm just as she shot her crossbow, and the dog glowed a bright yellow as it spun in a circle and hit the brothers, knocking them back. As it landed on it's feet, it ran back to Kapri who gave it a treat and pet it's head before it barked once and ran off.

Her Angelo Cannon.

Tori closed her eyes and held her arms to her chest before throwing them out from her sides and unleashing strong electrical energies from her body that hit the GF.

Marah closed her eyes as she began to twirl her nun chucks and her whole body glowed a light pink before she held up the nun chucks and cast three extremely powerful Thundaga spells in rapid succession, before doing the same thing over and casting three Walls on us, which had the same effect as Regen, to slowly replenish our strength, Protect and Shell.

Hunter smirked and steped forward, raising his gun and taking aim. Firing a large volley of powerful shots into the enemy, the larger minotaur collapsed.

I raised my blade, running forward to slash the remaining minotaur six times in rapid succession before backing off and holding my blade to the side. Running forward again, I hit the minotaur, launching him high into the air, before I followed him, striking him over and over before we landed on the ground and he collapsed.

Once the battle was over, they reluctantly joined us and we left, heading back to Deling City to speak to General Baliton.

(Deling City)

_Both Balamb and Galbadia Gardens are joining forces with the General from the Galbadian army... Why? No point in me thinking about it... 'SeeDs aren't supposed to question why'._

Heading back to the mansion, I noticed Kapri seemed increasingly nervous and frightened, but remained silent as we approached the guard. Giving him the ID number, he led us to the door where everyone walked in after him. I was about to follow when I felt a soft grip on my arm and turned to find Kapri's worried blue eyes on mine.

"Umm... Is my contract...still in effect?" she asked softly, her voice breaking a little.

_...What is it this time?_ I thought as I nodded silently.

"Don't leave me in this house, ok? Want me to explain why?" she asked, looking a little pained.

I shook my head. _This might take a while... _"You should know by now. Just tell us what to do and we'll do it." _But why would she be so scared to be left alone in this house?_

"Ok. Thanks." she said, giving me a warm smile before heading into the house.

Joining the others in the waiting room, I noticed Marah standing by a window, Tori sitting on the couch, Dustin staring at a painting, and Hunter leaning back in the leather seat that obviously belonged to Baliton himself.

"He's making us wait quite a while." Tori said with a raised eyebrow from her seat.

After a few moments, Kapri got up and sighed. "Hmph... He always does this! So discourteous...making people wait! I'm gonna go complain! Everyone just wait here!"

Before we could say anything, she stalked out the door, only to walk back in a moment later, giving us a forced smile. "Oh, by the way, this is my house. So don't worry." she said before taking off again.

_Her house...?_ I thought with wide eyes. But then that would mean that she was related to General Baliton, wouldn't it? Sighing, I closed my eyes. _...Hope it doesn't lead to any trouble._

"What the hell's going on?!" Dustin demanded angrily.

The door opened again and a man entered. He wore a fancy black suit and had black hair with grey streaks on either side of his face. His pale blue eyes were cold, and his looked to be in his early 40's.

Standing up straight, I stared him dead in the eye. "Where's Kapri?" I demanded calmly.

"She has not received the same type of taining as you and may become a burden. It's for the best that she stays out of this operation." he stated coldly.

"So, you're Kapri's father?" Marah asked curiously.

I blinked in surprise as it set in. It certainly explained why she knew Galbadia so well, and what she meant, saying this was her house. But why did she seem so afraid to be left alone in this house, with her father?

"I can't remember the last time she ever called me that." he mused out loud.

"So the father's a top military officer, and the daughter's a member of an anti-government faction?!' Dustin cried in shock. "Man, that's _bad_! Really bad!"

Merrick nodded and sighed. "Yes, indeed. It's a serious problem. But it doesn't concern you. It's our problem."

_That's not the case..._ I thought darkly.

"Besides, we have more important things to think about."

_The Garden's directive and Kapri's orders have the same value to us._ "Once our mission is accomplished here, we're working for Kapri, as per our contract. I don't know what your situation is, but please..." I stared at him firmly. "_Don't_ interfere when the time comes."

He took a step forward and glared at me coldly. "...And if I do?"

_What's his problem?_ "We're all SeeDs here. We'll act accordingly." I responded evenly, not at all intimidated by his tone.

"Hey, hey, hey...fellas!" Hunter shouted, jumping out os his seat and over the desk before he leaned against it and crossed his legs. "We're here to knock off the sorceress, right? So, let's get down to business."

Merrick remained silent, glancing to everyone in the room before giving me an appraising look. For a moment, I could've sworn I saw his lips twitch into a small grin before he hid it and nodded seriously. "Ok, let me explain the plan."

He went over how there would be two groups. one would make their way to the gate in the center of Deling, and the other was the sniper group.

"I'm sure you all know about the Galbadian Government reaching an greement with Sorceress Miko."

_So, her name's Miko... Miko... Why does that sound so familiar?_ I wondered silently.

The ceremony was going to be a parade with only one float, carrying the sorceress. The plan was that the gateway team would wait at their designated point until 20:00 hours in whic time, the float would enter the gateway and they had to flip the switch that would bring down the gate and trap the float.

Sniper team was to wait at the top of the Presidential Palace, where they'd wait until the float was trapped, and the sniper was to shoot her.

Pulling out a map, Merrick showed them where they were to wait and gave them further instructions. Apparently, a sniper rifle had been left at the spot for the sniper team. It was unmarked, so if the mission was a failure, they wouldn't be able to trace it back to him or anyone else for that matter.

"That's all. Now we wait. You're free to go anyplace you wish as long as you don't leave the city." General Baliton said easily. "Just one thing. Stay out of trouble."

_Who do you think we are, your daughter?_ I thought in irritation. "We're SeeDs." I said coolly.

We decided to wait at the mansion and an hour later, he sighed and nodded. "It's time. The sniper and the leader of this team will make up the Sniper Team. If the sniper should fail..."

Hunter gave him a glare at that, but he ignored it.

"The leader's role is vital."

_What's he mean by that?_ I thought suspiciously.

My gaze must've asked that very question because he nodded. "If the plan should fail for any reason... Or should the sniper misses... The leader must carry out a direct assault against the sorceress. The plan was devised carefully, because we intend this to be a covert operation, but our ultimate goal is to eliminate the sorceress, and we must achieve this at all costs. Even if they uncover our identities. So, who's going to lead the operation?"

I noticed everyone staring at me and nodded firmly. "I will."

"Fine." he nodded. "I'll leave the rest up to you."

_The Sniper Team is decided..._ "Hunter and I will make up the Sniper Team. The Gateway Team will be Dustin, Marah and Tori."

They gave understanding nods, and Marah and Dustin jumped around excitedly.

"So, who's gonna be the leader for the Gateway Team?" Marah asked with a smile.

Dustin began to throw fake punches, pretending to be casual, but I knew he really wanted the role. Unfortunately, I needed someone who'd keep a level head, and that wasn't him. _Soory Dustin. _I thought, turning to Tori and nodding. "Instructor Hanson... Tori Hanson, you will be in charge." I said formally.

She nodded and saluted me formally, taking the role with pride.

Merrick led Hunter and I out of the room and to where we'd wait for our chance to make our move.

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Yeah, I said it. I went there... LOL. Kapri is the daughter of Merrick and, well... If you go back, you'll realize who else. LOL.

So my busy-ness won't actually start until this coming Monday, so I'm going to upload as much as I can before that time.

Hope you like it.

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"This isn't a father-daughter quarrel. This isn't a game!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	15. Second Mission, Part 3

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : You're going to notice that I switch POVs a lot in this chapter. For those of you that don't know FF8, this part switches between three groups, back and forth, so I'm trying to keep up with that. Also, you'll definitely notice a difference in the way the sorceress acts now and how she did in that other chapter. There's a reason for that, which you'll find out later.

And yes, you'll notice that she's 'familiar' to many of the characters. There's a reason for that too.

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(Tori's POV)

_Wow._ Ok, so I was surprised. I guess I never expected Shane to put me in charge, and Dustin didn't seem to happy about it, but he brushed it off. As they left, I silently bid them a good luck before focusing on waiting for our chance to take off and head to the Gateway.

Marah began staring at the painting of a woman hoding a glass, and Dustin seemed to thoughtfully stare at a statue with an empty, outstretched hand in the corner of the room.

I couldn't blame him. I'd seen it too and it looked like it was supposed to hold something in it's hand, but it was empty.

"We're on your team, Instructor! Let's kick some ass!" Dustin cried excitedly.

I shook my head and sighed. When was he going go realize that I was no longer an instructor?

"Whoo-Hoo!" Marah called giddily.

Rolling my eyes, I headed to the door, only to have it swing open and Kapri to rush in, running right into me. She looked up and excited about something as she gave me an apologetic smile and bounced around a bit. "Hi!" she chirped.

_Great. Just what I needed._ I thought in irritation. We had to leave now, but if we stayed and chatted with Kapri, we'd be late.

"Finally got out of there! Did that man say anything?" she asked curiously.

"No, not really." Dustin answered in confusion.

She nodded before looking around and frowning. "Where's Shane?"

"I'm sorry, Kapri, but we really have to get going." I said as kindly as I could.

She shook her head and held up a hand. "Hold on a sec." Digging through her pockets, she pulled out a gold bangle with onyx all along it. "Take a look at this! This is called an Odine Bangle. I found it in that man's room!"

I frowned a little at how casually she called her own father 'that man'. She really must've hated him, or something. Then I questioned not only what she was doing in his room, but why he had an Odine Bangle.

"Odine?!" Dustin cried in surprise.

"What'cha gonna do with it?" Marah asked uneasily.

Kapri smirked. "It's supposed to suppress the sorceress' powers. But it's effects are still unknown. So I don't think they're going to use it for this mission."

"If it's Odine brand, it should be pretty effective!" Dustin insisted with wide eyes. "They're number one when it comes to magical goods!"

"Right! Right!" she agreed.

I couldn't take it anymore. The longer we sat here, chatting happily about some bangle, the more time passed. We were going to be late! "So exactly what do you want to do with it? Are you planning to have the sorceress put it on?" I demanded harshly.

Frowning deeply, I recalled when Merrick mentioned Sorceress Miko's name and wondered why it was so familiar. I noticed the same look on Shane's face as well. Shaking my head, I pointed in her face and stalked up to her, questioning her every step of the way. "Who? When? How?"

"That's what we're going to dicuss!" she said happily.

"We don't have time for this!" I yelled angrily. "Shane and Hunter are already standing by. We have an operation to carry out, too! You understand, don't you?" I pleaded, not wanting to hurt her feelings. "This isn't a father-daughter quarrel. This isn't a game!"

Hesitating for a moment, I turned and stalked out of the room, hearing Marah and Dustin apologizing to her before they followed me, and I sighed. I knew that I hurt her feelings, even though I didn't mean to.

(Kapri's POV)

"Who said this was a game? I understand what's going on... It's not like I don't have a plan..." I muttered, falling to the floor to sit there with my knees drawn to my chest. Why? Why did they keep treating me like a helpless child? I could take care of myself. I could fight too.

(Shane's POV)

"I'll make the first charge when we make the full-on attack. I'll try to buy some time." I called over my shoulder to Hunter as we ran down the path through the park to the main street and our waiting point.

Waving his hand, Hunter shook his head and scoffed. "That won't be necessary. I'll get the job done." he said firmly, though I could see fear in his eyes.

We finally reached our spot and waited silently for everything to begin.

"So, like... Is it true that SeeDs aren't supposed to question their missions?" he asked curiously.

_There are times I'd like to know for myself. Like...now for example. But..._ "Why do you care?" I asked in a bored tone.

He looked uncertain and gazed up at the building with a slightly knowing and guilty look. "So like...if you knew your enemies were pure evil, you'd get more fired up to fight them, right?"

_An enemy that is pure evil? Right and wrong are not what separate us from our enemies. It's our different standpoints, our perspectives that separate us. Both sides blame one another. There's no good and bad, just two different sides with different standpoints._ I thought quietly, shrugging a little in answer.

General Baliton gave a brief appearance to make sure we were in place and nodded firmly when he saw us next to him. "You two will wait here."

"General, why has the sorceress decided to have such an extravagant parade?" I questioned in pure confusion.

"She wants to establish her place in Galbadia Garden, since she's chosen it as her base." he explained.

_So that's why they want her taken out._ I thought with a nod.

"It's starting. I'm returning to my residence. Good luck." he stated before walking off.

_Ok. This is it._ I thought, narrowing my eyes as I waited patiently for our mission to proceed.

(Gateway, Normal POV)

_I shouldn't have yelled at her. She was just trying to help._

With a sigh, Tori exited the gateway, ignoring for the moment, Dustin and Marah who followedh er out with looks of confusion and worry.

"Instructor, what's up?" Dustin asked as he scratched his head.

"I think I was too hard on her." she answered absently. _She was just trying to help._

Those words kept repeating in her head, making Tori feel more and more guilty.

Dustin frowned in confusion. "Too hard?" he repeated.

"I'm going to go apologize." she decided.

"You mean...Kapri?" he asked, waving his hand a little to get her attention.

With a nod, Tori turned back to the others with a serious look on her face. "We still have time until 20:00. I'll go alone to apologize. You two stay here." she instructed. Running off, she became aware of footsteps following her and sighed in irritation, knowing it was Marah and Dustin.

"We can't just-HEY! Wait up!" he called, chasing after the girls.

(Merrick's Mansion)

Kapri was sitting on the floor of the office, her face buried on her legs, and the bangle hidden back in her pocket. _They just left me. I asked Shane not to, and they just left me behind._ she thought in confusion.

Sure, she knew about the importance of their mission, but she was still their client and asked them not to leave her behind. Plus, she could fight! Come on! She made it this far! Sure, ok, Shane had to revive her a few times, but more often than not, she held her own!

So...Why'd they leave her here? Why did they treat her like a helpless child?

Footsteps sounded and she recognized Meericks walking. Hearing them enter the room behind her, she refused to look up and waved her hand in a dismissal gesture, knowing it would irritate him.

"It'll be chaos out there soon." he stated softly. "You'll be safe here."

Again she waved her hand, dismissing him. After a moment of silence, he turned and left the room.

Raising her face from her legs, she sighed. _Why can't he just leave me alone?_ she thought darkly.

There was a sudden sound of whirring and she jumped into a standing position. "Oh, no! He's gonna lock me in!" Before the door could shut, she ran out of the room and made her way out of the mansion. "I...I can do it!" she panted, holding the ring she wore around her neck

(Tori's POV)

Running through the mansion, I headed to the room we left Kapri in and burst in, panting as I looked for her. "Kapri, I'm sorry, I..." Trailing off, I looked around, noting the room was empty and frowned, wondering where Kapri was.

Then the door slammed shut behind us and a metallic lock clicked into place.

Spinning around, I ran to the door and struggled to open it, sighing when it wouldn't budge. "Did we get locked in?"

"That Baliton guy?" Marah asked with a sour face.

Dustin groaned and slapped his face with his hand. "We're smack dab in the middle of a family quarrel here!"

"This is bad. I'm worried about Kapri, too." I admitted.

Dustin turned to me in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Kapri's probably on her way to see the sorceress as we speak. She wanted to help us..." _And I dismissed her in an instant. not even giving her a chance._ I thought guiltily. If anything happened to her, it'd be my fault.

(Kapri's POV)

Looking around, I realized I was in a back alley. I saw I was directly behind the Presidential Palace, and now just needed to find a way up. It was so dark, but a single lamp lit the area well enough for me to see a lose man-hole cover on the ground, and a truck parked with a huge pile of obviously heavy crates in the back of it.

Taking a step closer, I inspected the boxes better and realized they led up to a ledge that wound it's way around to a door. With a shaky nod, I stepped forward, mentally preparing myself for my own personal mission.

"I'm not a SeeD. but... I can do this. This isn't some kind of game..." I repeated to myself as I climbed the boxes, stopping occassionally when one shook under my weight. I didn't dare chance them falling over. Not only could I be badly hurt, but the noise would bring every soldier in the town, and it would scrap my only way into the Palace.

Once they settled, I finished making my way to the top and stood on the highest box, bracing myself and jumping across to land safely on the ledge and run to a doorway. Going inside, I found myself in a small hallway and walked through, soon finding a door and entering it to find myself in a large, mostly empty room with lots of white gauzy curtains fluttering around.

Feeling one brush up against my arm, I jumped a little and spun to watch as it fluttered away before turning back and taking a few steps forward. Seeing a figure sitting in a chair, I swallowed nervously, knowing it was Sorceress Miko.

_I..I can do this... They're counting on me... I have to prove myself to them..._ I thought nervously, hiding the bnagle behind my back and gripping the ring I wore nervously as I took a single step forward.

"Um... Excuse me..." I began shakily, placing my other arm behind my back and plastering a fake, nervous smile on my face. "I'm...the daughter of, um Galbadian Army's, um...General Baliton. I...thought I'd...come pay my respects... You know...'cause of my father and all..."

She didn't move and her back was to me, so I couldn't see her face. I did know, though, that her magical mask had a visor that she'd brought down over her face. It hid everything but her mouth and the bottom third of her face.

Taking two more steps forward, I felt a lump in my throat but refused to back down. "So, I...um...brought you a small gift... Please..." I moved forward to present it to her when I felt a sharp pain through my body and I was flung back five feet, landing painfully on my side and unable to get up as I struggled to breathe.

_What...?_ I thought in a daze as I slowly sat up, wincing in pain. I felt a strong vibration in my arm and looked to find myself still holding the Odine Bangle. But as I tried to release my hold on it, my hand refused to cooperate, and I found myself being lifted into the air, dangling helplessly.

Another sharp pain and I felt my world turn black, falling limply to the gound a I lost consciousness.

_Shane... I'm sorry. I failed..._

(Normal POV)

The long black hair that pooled from the back of the mask bagan to glow golen and shorten as it disappeared. The visor of her mask pulled back and Miko opened her eyes to show the hint of yellow in them. Flashing black a moment, her eyes returned to normal and she stood, igoring the presence of the dazed and currently hypnotized girl behind her, as she stood as well.

_She may come in handy._ the sorceress thought as she walked forward silently, only the faint sound of tinkling bells ringing in the air. Holding out her hand, the wall rippled with pruple energy and she stepped through it like it wsn't there, followed by Kapri.

Walking aling the path, she exited to the stairs that left off at a podium and walked up to it, ignoring the praising glance of the President. _Ignorant fool._ she thought darkly as she took her place, glaring coldly down at the thousands of people on the streets below her. _It's time..._

(With Shane and Hunter)

"Here she comes..." Hunter stated quietly as they watched the sorceress walk to the podium. He looked pained at seeing her, like he knew her from somewhere, but not as Sorceress Miko.

Watching her carefully, Shane tensed up as he sensed something was wrong.

Once she made her way to the podium, he noticed another feminine figure behind her and felt his eyes widen when he recognized who it was. Swaying in an obvious daze, Kapri stood not five feet away from the sorceress.

"H...Hey! That..That girl!" Hunter cried in shock as he saw Kapri.

"...Kapri?" He questioned quietly.

"...Lowlifes." The sorceress spat coldly. "...Shameless, filthy wretches. How you celebrate my ascention with such joy. Hailing the very one whom you have condemned for generations. Have you no shame? What happened to the evil, ruthless sorceress from your fantasies? The cold-blooded tyrant that slaughtered countless men and destroyed many nations?" She smirked evilly. "Where is she now? She stands before you, ready to become your new ruler."

The sorceress began to laugh evilly, and Shane and Hunter exchanged confused glances.

The President frowned in confusion before walking up to the sorceress. "M-Miko...are you alright...?" he asked nervously.

Without even looking, her hand shot out to the side and pressed firmly against his chest. Lifting him off the ground, his struggled for a moment before his body fell limp and it began to burn with a purple smoke. Tossing the limp body away, she sneered out over everyone who remained cheering, as if they didn't hear a word of her speech.

"This is reality. No one can help you. Sit back and enjoy the show."

The people began to cheer even louder and some even waved flags with the symbol of Galbadia on them. It was as if they were blind and deaf to her threats and actions. They showed no sign of fear or confusion. Just joy.

"Rest assured, you fools. Your time will come. This is only the beginning. Let us start a new reign of terror. I will let you live a fantasy beyond your wildest imagination." Turning, she stalked away from the podium and headed back inside, leaving the dazed girl outside. Stopping in the doorway, her gaze travelled to the blonde and she smirked. "Let us end this ceremony with a sacrifice." she stated coldly, placing her hands at her chest before raising them to the sky and summoning to creatures.

With a final laugh, she walked off and made her way to the float that awaited her, along with her bodyguard.

Back out by the podium, Kapri shook her head in a daze and gazed out around her. Spotting the body of the President, her eyes widened, and hearing something behind her, she spun to find two large lizards come rushing at her. They were green and scaled around the upper body, but the lower body was orange and furred.

Stopping for a moment, they set their eyes on Kapri as she took a step back, and leapt forward, only giving her time for a blood curdling scream before she had to fight for her life.

Meanwhile, down in the crown, with Shane and hunter, they both jumped at the scream and Shane took a step forward before pausing. As much as he wanted to help he, there was no way into the building at the moment.

"Hey, hey, hey! She's in trouble, big time!" Hunter called, shaking Shane's arm roughly.

Pushing him off, just as roughly, Shane frowned and narrowed his eyes in concern. "The parade hasn't started yet." he said calmly, though his heart was racing a mile a minute. "The gate's not open." In other words, they were stuck and had to wait.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Hunter yelled in frustration.

Shaking his head, he took a deep breath. _Damn it! Just hang on, Kapri!_

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Yes, Hunter knows her. Again...it'll all be explained later.

Hope you like it.

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"I...I can't...I'm sorry. I can't do it. I always freeze like this... I try to act cool, joke around, but I just can't handle the pressure..."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	16. Second Mission, Finalé

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : Ok, if you really think I'm going to kill off any characters like Shane, Blake, Tommy, Miko...or anyone like that, then you got the _wrong_ fic. I hate character deaths so try to avoid it. I'm sure you've noticed that I've done so before, but I always HAVE to have a happy ending. So despite how this chapter seems, remember that this is only the _beginning_ of the fic.

Some of it might seem a _little_ gorey or like I killed someone, but I didn't. Sorceress Really powerful powers that can bring back the dead, over and over and over and over and over... You get the point, right? LOL

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(Merrick's Mansion, Tori's POV)

"Oh, no!" I cried, hearing the music start up. I ran to the window and looked out, cursing the fact that it had bars on it, or I would've jumped out if I had to. "It's starting! We've got to find a way out of here!"

I noticed Dustin frowning thoughtfully at the statue again and Marah glanced at the picture. Checking them out, I noticed that the picture was of a woman, identical to the statue, and she was holding a glass goblet in her outstretched hand.

With a frown, I walked over to a gladd cabinet with a lot of glass goblets and looked at them all closely. Most had brass or gold handles, but one had a silver handle and looked more worn than the others. Lifting a few, I also noticed it was a lot heavier than the others, too. So I took it and placed it in the hand of the statue, turning it until it fit in to the small indentation.

There was a whirring, and the hand of the statue lowered a bit before it shook violently and moved to the side, revealing a hidden passageway.

"NO WAY!" Dustin cried in shock as he ran over with Marah,

Marah nodded with a grin. "Pretty sneak-y!"

"Let's go!" I ordered, beginning into the dark and dimly lit passageway, noting briefly that it was very damp and smelled really foul.

Marah protested at that. "But we don't even know where it goes!"

"Better than staying here." Dustin put in, following me. Taking a step in, he gagged and coughed before covering his nose. "Nasty!"

I saw a ladder and looked down, jumping down to get to the bottom quickly. The smell was a lot stronger here, but at least I knew why. "Probably because it's a _sewer_, Dustin!" I called up, standing back as he and then Marah jumped down.

Marah made a face and seemed to focus on breathing through her mouth, and other than making a face, Dustin seemed to have adapted to the smell.

We sloshed through the sewers, making our way up and down paths, and climbing over water wheels. At first, I thought we were going around in cirlces, but then we found a map, and I peered carefully up and out of a man-whole cover, using what I saw to pinpoint our location.

_We're close._ I thought eagerly, feeling my heart pounding in my chest.

We prepared to move when the music grew a lot louder and we stopped in horror.

"It's starting!" Dustin cried in a panick.

That meant we _didn't_ have long!

(With Shane and Hunter, Shane's POV)

The gates slowly opened, and we ignored the numerous dancers waiting for the float. Watching as it slowly moved out of the building, the sorceress sat on board it, looking bored as she gazed out at the cheering fans.

"Now's our chance! Come on!" Hunter cried urgently, but I paused, staring at a face, I wasn't sure I'd ever see again.

Standing on the float, beside the sorceress, gunblade in hand and wearing his trademark cocky smirk...

Blake.

_So, he hadn't been executed._ I thought darkly as he grinned into the crowd from his place at the side of the sorceress.

"What're you waiting for?!" Hunter demanded, bringing me back to the present. "Kapri could die!!"

That did it, and we ran off through the crowd, making our way back through the gate and to a truck loaded with boxes. Climbing the boxes, we hopped across to the platform and ran into the building, finding the two Lizards hovering over Kapri's still body on the ground.

"Kapri!!!" I yelled, panicking that we were too late.

Rushing forward, I slashed visciously at the closest lizard, hitting it multiple times before I sent it lfying into the air and followed after it, slashing it multiple more times and dropping to the ground in a crouch. Sensing an energy from it, I frowned and closed my eyes, holding my hand out as I sensed and drew Carbuncle, another GF.

Hunter took his turn next, standing forward and firing his gun extremely quickly. These shots hit the monsters in the eyes, and released a black smoke cloud each time, effectively blinding the monsters from hitting us.

Swinging my blade in my hand, I held it to the side as I raised my hand and cast Demi on them, weakening them quite a bit. Then I cast Firas on them both, followed by another volley of shots from Hunter.

Soon, the first one fell, but we still had another to go. Checking through my magics, I cast another Demi followed by an Aero, and watched as the second lizard finally collapsed away, sighing in relief as I knelt next to Kapri and sheathed my sword.

She moved a little and sat up, refusing to look into my eyes. "...I was scared." she admitted, her voice filled with confusion and shame. Sitting up further, she launched herself at me and grabbed my arm, holding it tightly. "...Really scared." she almost whimpered.

"It's over now." I stated in as calming a voice as I could.

"I was scared. I was really, really scared." she whimpered, shaking as she held me tighter.

Frowning, I looked down to the shivering mass of blonde locks and sighed sadly. "You're not used to battles, are you?"

"I couldn't...I just couldn't... I couldn't fight alone." she breathed shakily.

_You're not ready for all this._ I thought sadly, using my free arm to gently brush some of her hair back. "Better get going." I said, standing up as she released my arm.

Following me, she quickly latched onto my arm and shook as she struggled to remain standing. I knew what she was thinking and sighed. _Right. Her orders._ "I haven't forgotten your order. Just stay close to me." I suggested, and she let me go with a nod and a shaky smile. _She's...not ready for any of this... So, how'd she get involved in the first place?_

Heading back the way we'd come, I found the trap door and opened it, sliding down and picking up the sniper rifle that had been waiting for us. I waited until Kapri had climbed down and moved to sit on a small metal covered engine that worked one of the carousel figures. Hunter walked up to me silently with a grim expression on his face, and I handed him the rifle, expecting some smart-ass comment, but he only took it silently and nodded, hesitating for a moment before he turned and walked to the front of the carousel and sat down against the wall, shaking slightly.

_Huh? Why' he get so quiet?_ I watched as he closed his eyes tightly and bowed his head. _Oh, he must be concentrating._ I thought before turning away and watching as Kapri looked at the floor with a blank face. _Loneliness of the sharpshooter... I guess he has a point. Can't hear anything from in here. I wonder what's going on with the parade? _

Then I frowned and felt my eyes narrow as I walked over to sit on another metal covered engine, facing Kapri. _Blake... So he's alive after all. I don't know whether that's a good thing or not._ "Kapri..." I didn't want to tell her, but knew she had a right to know. "Blake's alive. He was in the parade with the sorceress."

Her knees had been drawn up to her chest, but hearing this, she let them drop to the ground with a light thud. Staring at me with wide eyes, she looked away and somehow _didn't_ seem as relieved as I'd expected. If anything, she seemed more pained. "...What does it mean?" she asked after a moment.

"Who knows?" I responded with a slight shrug. _If I were to go against the sorceress directly, would I have to go through Blake? ...That's the way it goes as a SeeD. You can't chose your enemies..._ "I may end up killing Blake."

Her face paled but she nodded slowly. "You're both...prepared, right?" she asked softly, looking torn. "That's the kind of world you live in. You've had a lot of emotional training. But...of course, I'd rather it not happen..."

"That's up to Hunter." I responded before sighing and getting up. Walking to the back, I noticed the look of terror on his face as he shook violently and felt my eyes widen. _Huh? Is he freakin' out?!_ "Don't tell me you're getting the jitters..." I said incredulously as I crouched next to him.

"I...I can't do it!" he hissed in shame, not looking at me as he held the sniper rifle leaning against his chest.

(Gateway Team, Tori's POV)

I was worried we wouldn't make it on time, but seeing where we were on the map, I managed to find the way out rather quickly. Leading Dustin and Marah through the smelly sewers of Deling City, We fought Creepers, Red Bats and Buels.

Still, we made it to the Gateway arch in no time, finding a ladder and climbing up it to the very building we were to be stationed at. Climbing it all the way to the top, I waited by the switch as Dustin watched the time and Marah watched the parade anxiously.

Feeling my heart pounding, and body shaking with nerves, I took a deep breath and mentall prepared myself.

"Instructor, now! Hit the switch!" Dustin suddenly cried, and I gasped loudly before doing as he told me. Once that was done, I closed my eyes, praying that he hadn't told me to pull the lever too soon out of excitement, and clutched at my heart as I walked over to the window.

"Yeah! We got her!" Marah called, jumping a little.

I looked out the window and watched as Sorceress Miko shot up from her seat, glaring angrily at the gates that had closed around her. Sighing in relief, I looked to the clock tower as the carousel began to raise from the top of it.

_We did our part. Now it's up to Hunter and Shane._ I thought as I prayed for luck.

(Clock Tower Carousel, Shane's POV)

"Hunter Bradley!" I hissed loudly shaking him a bit as I tried to get his attention.

Pushing me away, he glared at me while shaking and shook his head. "I...I can't...I'm sorry. I can't do it. I always freeze like this... I try to act cool, joke around, but I just can't handle the pressure..." he said softly.

Frowning at this, I tried to make sense of it. For one thing, if he always froze like this, then why did Headmaster Tyzonn send him with us? Surely he knew about it. Did he _mean_ for us to fail? Shaking my head, I focused on trying to get Hunter to take the shot. _He's got to get over this sometime._ "Forget it." I said easily, waving my hand for emphasis. "Just shoot."

"My bullet...the sorceress...I'll go down in history." he said absently, not paying attention to me. "I'd change the history of Galbadia...of the world! It's all too much..."

"Enough!" I hissed again, struggling to keep my voice low. "Just shoot already!"

"I can't, dammit!" he yelled before leaning back and looking lost. He still shivered but not as bad.

Shaking my head, I sighed and closed my eyes, keeping a tight reign on my annoyance and anger. _We don't have the time!_ I thought darkly, tempted to take the rifle and make the shot myself, but I knew I wouldn't make it. "Hunter, calm down. Everyone's counting on you. I don't care if you miss." I told him honestly. _Just take the shot and see what happens._ "Whatever happens, just leave the rest up to us. Just think of it as a signal. A sign for us to make our move." I pleaded calmly.

Hesitating for a moment, he looked into my eyes unsurely. "Just a signal..."

I nodded. _That's it..._ "Please."

Getting up slowly, he turned and leaned his arms on the wall of the carousel behind him, looking out over the edge and aiming the gun. After a moment he began to shake a little and pulled his head away from the scope. Shaking it, he sighed. "...Just a sign..." he repeated firmly as his hands steadied and he leaned back in.

BANG!

I watched as the shot made it's way to Sorceress Miko, but by swiftly raising her hand, she was able to deflect it in time and I shook my head, cursing under my breath. That meant, since the sniper attack failed, we'd have to go head to head.

Falling back, Hunter looked at me with slight shame. "Sorry."

I shrugged and pulled out my gunblade. "It's ok. Your aim was perfect. Just leave the rest up to me. I'm goin' in for the sorceress. Hunter, Kapri, just be ready to back me up!" I ordered firmly as I stood up. Taking one last glance at Hunter I nodded seriously in Kapri's direction as she crouched next to him. "Take care of her." I stated before I jumped over the edge.

Falling to the ground below, I landed and rolled quickly, springing back to my feet and making a b-line straight for a red convertable that was parked nearby. Hopping into the driver's seat, I noticed the keys in the ignition and turned it on, backing it out of the parking space and aiming it for where the float was trapped.

Ignoring the numerous Galbadian Soldiers wrestling with the public and running towards me, I gunned the engine, racing towards the gate. Turning at the last second, I allowed the car to slam into it sideways, and jumped through two of the bars, climbing up the back of the float to where the sorceress sat.

Seeing Blake standing in front of a clearly pissed off sorceress, I looked past him in confusion. _This is Sorceress Miko? Why do I feel like we've met before?_

"Well, this is how it turned out." Blake said with amusement as he bounced the flat of his gunblade against his shoulder, smirking as he gazed at me.

I shrugged and stared indifferently at him, masking my confusion. "I see you've become the sorceress' lap dog."

Raising his gunblade to the sky, he scowled at me briefly before smirking again. "I prefer to be called her knight. This has always been my dream."

He suddenly rushed at me, and I quickly deflected the blade, counter attacking and slicing him across the midsection, though it wasn't deep as he jumped back just as I swung. Racing forward after him, I swung again, hearing the metal on metal screech as he blocked my shot, and I kicked him quickly before he could try some dirty trick on me.

Backing off, holding his midsection, he grinned. "Shane, you're mine!" he called, straightening up and holding out his hand.

Expecting the blast of fire magic, I raised my hands and blade to block it, and lowered them just in time to watch as he raced forward. He swung more quickly than I'd expected, and before I could move to block it, I felt a biting pain in my side, sending me staggering a bit. After recovering my balance, I ignored the wound as I raced forward myself. I cast a quick Fira on him before repeating his trick and catching him across the midsection again, sending him staggering back.

Giving me an angry glare, he shrugged and cooled off more quickly than the Blake I knew ever did, and raised his gunblade again, ignoring his wound as well. "Thought I was dead, huh? Not until I fulfill my dream!" he yelled as he charged.

I blocked his attack and kiced him again before holding my hand out and casting a Thundara. As he backed off, I swung my blade and rushed forward, hitting him seven times before I backed off.

Falling to his knees, Blake truly glared at me now. "Ugh, not bad!" he grunted, slowly managing to stand back up. "Shane, this is it!" he yelled, casting powerful Firagas on me before racing forward, glowing yellow and unleashing one of his attacks. Hitting me multiple times, I watched through blurry eyes as he backed up, cursing that I wasn't quicker to block his attacks.

I fell to my own knees, but was immediately back up. Shaking my head to clear it, I glared at him and staggered forward. Gripping the handle of my blade tightly, I waited for his next move, determined to make it his last.

With a triumphant grin, Blake raced forward, holding his blade high, but as he got close enough, I swallowed heavily and raised my blade, watching as it all seemed to happen in slow motion.

As Blake ran forward, he didn't notice that I was holding my gunblade ready. He got closer and closer, and I waited for the right moment. Soon, he was too close to stop himself in time, and I raised my blade just high enough.

His eyes widened in horror, and he tried to stop himself.

Soon, that look of horror turned into one of incredible pain, and he cried out as the blade slid through his stomach like butter.

He finally stopped. The blade went into his stomach, portruding out the other side and he looked down at it, in a daze. Blood pooled on the ground around his body, where it poured from the wound. He looked at the blade, and then looked at me with wide, uncomprehending eyes as he took several shaky steps back and the blade slid out of his stomach.

Staggering to the side, Blake dropped his gunblade and clutched at the wound. "I...lost...?!" he whispered in a shocked voice.

Finally, he collapsed and fell to the ground, unmoving. I watched him silently for a moment, feeling a powerful guilt and pain build up within me. Then, his limp body began to glow and my head spun to the sorceress, watching as she lowered her hand with a bored look. Turning back, I noticed that all the blood, and Blake's wound were gone. Yet still, he remained unmoving.

"...A SeeD..." the woman stated in a cold, rage-filled voice. "...Planted in a rundown Garden..."

I raised my blade to battle her when I felt a strange warmth running through me. Glancing at my side, I watched as my wound faded and realized that a Cure spell had been cast on me. Looking up, I watched as Kapri and Hunter joined me, each looking determined.

"I can fight if I'm with you!" Kapri called as she glared at the sorceress. "That's why I'm here!"

Hunter nodded. "I need to redeem myself!"

The sorceress glared at us with such hate. "The accursed SeeDs..." she spat. Raising her hand, a blast of energy hit Hunter, knocking him back a foot.

Shaking his head, he raised his rifle and aimed carefully before firing a volley of shots at her. Then he quickly pulled out a potion and drank it.

Kapri glared before closing her eyes and raising her hand. She glowed white for a moment before throwing her hand out and a small hole appeared in the ground before us. Two tall, pointy green ears appeared before a small, green, furry creature jumped out, flying high into the air. It had a long, fluffy tail, soft looking ears, gentle blue eyes and a red gem in the center of it's forehead. Raising it's two front paws, the gem glowed red before emitting a rainbow-colored light, and I felt a barrier form around me. Falling out of the sky, it landed back in it's hole and the hole disappeared.

That was Carbuncle, a GF. His only ability was to cast reflect on the party in battles, causing magics to bounce off a barrier and hit the caster instead, and since we were facing a powerful sorceress...

Sorceress Miko raised her hand and cast a powerful blizzaga that was reflected off Kapri's shield, and hit her, causing her to back off a step. Standing straight, she glared at us as she brought her hands into her chest. After a moment, she raised one and a flash of light was seen around Hunter before his reflective barrier shattered, and he was left vulnerable to magics.

Running forward, I sliced the sorceress several times before I fliped back and jumped into the air. Holding my blade above my head, I sensed the energy buildup and spun twice, swinging my blade around my body before I landed and the energy waves I'd created hit her.

Kapri whistled loudly and her dog appeared, stopping beside her and howling at the sky. A white light surrounded us, casting regen and an invincible spell, and she gave the dog a treat before it rushed off.

The sorceress cast another Dispel, but it had no effect.

We were intangible, to a point. No magical or physical attacks could touch us, but we could attack others.

Hunter glowed brightly before raising his gun and firing a volley of shots at the sorceress, that exploded on contact, causing her to stagger back.

She hunched over and clutched at her chest, glaring at us angrily. "Impudent SeeDs..." she snarled.

Since the invincibility was only temporary, it soon faded, and Sorceress Miko stood straight. Staring at us with dead, haunted eyes, she slowly raised her hand and we armed ourselves again. Several giant blades of ice formed above her hand and she threw her arm down and they shot forward.

I felt my eyes widen as I took in the approaching blades. Feeling my hand go limp, I barely registered that I'd dropped my gunblade, when I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder, radiating through my whole body. Everything seemed to slow down, almost to a crawl.

Out of the corner of my eyes, I watched as Blake stood up and sneered triumphantly at me. Kapri's eyes went wide and she opened her mouth. I knew she was screaming, but with the roar of my blood and heart in my ears, I couldn't hear anything. Hunter looked pale and shocked, turning and taking a step towards me.

That's when I realized that they were getting farther away.

I was falling.

I watched as Kapri raced to the edge of the float as I fell, reaching out her arm with a horrible pain in her eyes as she tried to catch me. I saw the tears, saw her mouthing my name, but heard nothing.

I could hear my heartbeat slowing down, and a feeling of utter cold washed over me, numbing the excruciating pain that I was in. Feeling my eyes grow too heavy to keep open, I let them close and welcomed the peaceful darkness.

(Kapri's POV)

It was that dream all over again, but this time, it was more of a nightmare. Just like what I'd seen before, the sorceress shot those ice blades at us. They bypassed Hunter and I completely, and as I spun, pierced Shane's shoulder. But it was too close...

Too close to his heart.

I watched as his eyes widened, feeling my heart stop. I couldn't even breathe.

He looked around with a dazed, confused look for a moment and I couldn't help it.

I screamed.

Cried out in pain and horror as he began to unconsciously lean backward. Hearing something behind me, I spun to find Blake staring at him with a sneer, and turned back, letting go and racing for the edge.

But I was too late.

Even as I dropped to my knees and reached my arm out as far as I possibly could, even as I screamed his name over and over...he was too far. I couldn't catch him.

I didnt even feel the tears streaming down my cheeks as I watched his eyes slowly close, before he landed on the ground with a dull thud.

"SHAAAANNEE!" I screamed again, feeling arms come around me.

I saw the dark skin on his hands and knew it was Blake. Struggling in his hold, I couldn't take it. Falling limp, I welcomed my own darkness.

**(END OF DISK 1)**

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Kay. I tried to go for more feeling into the scene. Hope it's done ok. I was kind of tired of all the fight after fight and stuff, but again, I wanted to finish this section. Bet you're all wondering what's going to happen next (Unless you've played FF8) LOL. Well, stay tuned. LOL.

**Note** : For those of you that don't know Final Fantasy, there ARE monsters that use 'Bad Breath' and 'Fart' attacks, so if I mention that, it's not my messed up sense of humor. It really DOES happen! LOL.

Hope you like it.

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"Dear Kelly's Mother and Father, Kelly's been a good girl today."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi.


	17. Dreamworld

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

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(WinHill Village)

(DreamWorld, Normal POV)

Standing in the middle of a small room, Tommy looked around and sighed happily. It had been quite some time since his, Zack and Jason's escape from the strange rock place. For so long he'd been bedridden with almost all of his bones broken.

He'd been lucky.

To be honest, he hadn't heard from Zack or Jason since that day and didn't even know if they were alive. Part of him always wondered, but he forged ahead in life, trying to keep living.

With a sigh, Tommy turned and headed down the stairs, buttoning his black shirt and brushing off his beige pants as he went, descending the stairs to the small living room below. The place was mostly empty. A cabinet, table and two chairs, stove and fridge, and on top of the dressed, a picture of a man and woman.

Now, to what you're thinking, no. The picture was not of Tommy and Kimberly, but of two people he'd never met.

"Uncle Tommy! There's someone here to see yoo!" a little girl of maybe 7 years ran into the room, breathless, wearing a light blue dress. She had shoulder length red hair and light blue eyes.

This was a little girl who'd been adopted by a kindhearted young woman who'd taken him in and taken care of him since the escape. Despite how much everyone hated him, they all loved her, so they put up with him for her sake alone.

Frowning a little, he bent down to talk to the little girl, pushing his long hair out of his face. "Huh? Me?" he asked in confusion. "What's this person look like?"

"Umm..." she hummed with a confused face, scrunching up her face as she struggled to remember.

Ahh, the attention span of a 7 year old.

"He's tawking to Kat right now." she said as she ran to the doorway.

Nodding in understanding he stood up. "Hmm? Is he at the pub?"

"Yep!" she said with a tooth grin as she bounced in the doorway. "That's why I came over to get yoo, Uncle Tommy! Am I a good girl?"

Immediately, Tommy shook his head and gave her a stern glare. "No you are not!" he said firmly. "It's dangerous to be out there by yourself, Kelly! What if a monster came and attacked you?"

Looking down, the 7 year old girl began to sniffle but still tried to act brave. "It's only next door. It's ok." she insisted weakly.

_So you think._ Shaking his head again, he sighed and walked over to her, crouching down. "It's still dangerous!" he insisted. "And since you're such a cute little girl, the monsters will especially be after you!" he warned, pinching her cheek lightly and giving her a small smile. "They'll catch you and then they'll suck out all your blood. If anything like that should happen, Uncle Tommy's gonna cry..."

It was true. Though this child wasn't related to him at all, he saw her as the daughter he never had.

"I'll be ok." she chirped happily. "I'll just call yoo, Uncle Tommy, and yoo'll come rescue me, right??"

"Kelly..." he sighed.

"Standing next to the door, she smiled. "Am I a good girl now?"

Chuckling softly, he tilted his head to the side and stood up, walking over to the picture of the couple and looking at it sadly. These were Kelly's parents. Not too long ago, they'd been killed by the monsters that had invaded Winhill Village. Even with Galbadian Soldiers stationed around the place, they still roamed freely. So now Kelly was an orphan, adopted from an old stone orphanage by Katherine, who ran the local pub here.

"Yes, Kelly. You're a good girl." he said absently before smiling a little at the picture. "Dear Kelly's Mother and Father, Kelly's been a good girl today." he said mock seriously, knowing how much she appreciated things like this.

Following Kelly to the door, Tommy made her wait as he headed out. Seeing a random Soldier walking around, he sighed and nodded to the guy.

"You think the Esthar Soldiers are really comin'?" the guy asked in a bored tone.

He shrugged. "That was two years ago, right? They're probably too busy bowin' to the sorceress or kidnapping little girls." He shuddered at the thought of Kelly being kidnapped because Esthar was looking for 'successors' for their sorceress.

"I hear they're lookin' for a successor for their sorceress, Adel, the ruler of Esthar. If they come back here, I'm sure it'll be for Kelly this time." the soldier said with a frown as he gaze the clueless little girl by the house a fond look.

Scoffing, Tommy shrugged. "Hah! They gotta get past me first!" he said before walking off with a wave.

Heading to the pub, he battled a Caterchipillar and a few Bite Bugs. Shaking his head in disgust, he gagged when one of the Bite Bugs farted on him, and took an antidote to cure the poison before shooting it. Still gagging, he headed to the front door of the pub, and making sure there were no more monsters, he waved Kelly over. "Kelly! Now's your chance!"

"Cha-nce!" she cried, rushing over as fast as her little legs would carry her, and waiting at Tommy's side with another toothy grin.

Patting her lightly on the head, he opened the door and let her in before entering himself.

The bar was a small, but cozy little place. Five tables, each with white lilies in a vase in the center, and a bar, where a lovely young blonde woman stood. She had long blonde hair, and blue eyes, and wore a heavy pink sweater with blue jeans. Currently, she was scolding Kelly for taking off the way she did, her thick australian accent, thicker than usual..

"You understand, Kelly? Now go to your room and play!" she scolded lightly before turning and walking behind the bar.

Looking at me, Kelly made a face. "I got in twouble..." she whispered.

"That's 'cause you broke your promise. Too baaad..." Tommy whined back, just as quietly.

Glaring over the top of the bar, Kat folded her arms over her chest. "Tommy! Use proper english when talking to Kelly!" she scolded him.

Pouting, he turned to Kelly, who was grinning. "I got in twouble..." he whined.

"Too baaad..." she mimicked him.

Chuckling quietly, I heard a sound and looked up, blinking in shock when I noticed the all too familiar person, despite the outfit they were wearing.

"It's been a long time, Tommy." he said with a grin.

The man was wearing lose blue jeans and a blue open shirt with a black shirt under it, his daggers sitting on his hips and his arms folded over his chest. "ZACK!!" Tommy yelled happily, standing up straight. Looking down to Kelly he smiled and bent back down. "This is Uncle Tommy's friend. He's not a bad guy." he told her, and she smiled.

Walking over to Zack, Tommy joined him at the bar. "You seem well." he stated with a relieved smile. _If he's ok, then Jason must be ok, too. _"Hey, how long has it been? You know, since our grand escape from Centra?"

That was the land we were in at the time.

"One would call that being chased out." Zack pointed out.

Kat nodded knowingly. "I thought so."

"I would say about two years." he finished.

Tommy nodded slowly. "I was bedridden for six months. It seemed like every bone in my body was boken."

"I nursed him back to health." the bartender put in with a reserved smile.

"Thank you, for taking good care of Tommy." Zack said warmly. "I was able to recover in about a month, or so. Ever since then...I've been searching for you."

"Why?" Tommy asked in confusion.

Shrugging, Zack smirked. "After leaving the army, well...just killing time, I guess. Life's pretty boring without you as entertainment, my man."

"That's a harsh thing to say." he put in with a mock wince. "I've been living a productive life, here."

"So, what do you want to know?"

Frowning, Tommy thought about it. There was so much to ask about. How Jason was doing... What Kimberly was up to... "What's Jason up to?" he asked, finding a place to start.

"He quit the army, too. Luckily, he found a job, and he's working pretty hard."

"And what's he doing?" Tommy pressed.

Shrugging, Zack seemed to think about it. "He's a Janitor down at D-District Prison. Oh, and he never got his voice back, but you can usually tell what he wants from his facial expression."

"Can't picture him moppin' floors, but I'm glad he's doing well." Tommy nodded. "What about Kimberly? How's she doing?"

"I don't know..." Zack answered hesitantly, looking blank.

Kat popped in at this. "You mean Kim, the singer?"

"That's right." Zack answered with a nod. "Tommy used to frequent her nightclub often."

"Shut up!" he scolded with a chuckle as he turned bright red. "So what if I did?"

"Kim used to sing at a nightclub?" Kat asked cluelessly. "Then the first song she released was 'Eyes on Me'."

"No, she didn't sing, she just played the piano." Zack answered.

"H-How does the song go?" Tommy asked nervously, remembering their talk about his eyes and the 'many faces' he'd shown her. Was this the song she was talking about? The song she made for him?

"You don't know?" Kat seemed honestly surprised.

"You never let me hear it." he answered a little bitterly.

"I didn't think you liked music. The song's about being in love...I really like it."

"Heard she recently got married." Zack put in.

Kat nodded with a sudden understanding. "Oh yeah! To some army General, right? General Baliton, or something."

"I'm not too sure." he answered with a shake of his head. Sighing, Zack took a sip from a glass of water Kat had given him. He knew this news would hurt Tommy.

"I read in a magazine that her true love went off to war and never came back. General Baliton comforted her while she was feeling down, that's how they got to know each other." Kat explained, narrowing her eyes at the bar counter as she tried to remember.

"...So, she didn't wait for this soldier to come back...?" Zack asked with a thoughtful look.

"Who cares?!" Tommy demanded loudly, looking hurt but determined to be happy for her. "As long as she's happy, right? That's all that matters!" Sighing, he nodded to himself. "Let's talk later. Time to do some work."

Looking lost, Zack nodded slowly. "...Ok."

"So, what's the plan? You gonna stick around here for a while?"

Looking to Kat, Zack nodded slowly. "If it would be alright with you."

Shrugging, Kat picked up a glass and began cleaning it. "You work for what you eat. If that's fine with you than be my guest." she put in firmly, but warmly.

"Come back soon, ok?" Kelly put in with a smile as she waved from the bottom of the stairs.

Kat nodded. "Well, have fun at work. I'll have lunch ready."

(Tommy's POV)

Heading out of the bar, we made our way to the center of the town square. Before continuing on, I stopped and took a fond look at the little town that had become my happy home. Sure, it was no Deling City, but it was a nice little place.

Turning away, I walked to the bridge that led out of the main part of the town. Beyond here, there was a long road with a chocobo crossing, a flower shop, and a church and shop, along with one more residence.

"Tommy."

Stopping on the bridge, I turned to Zack.

"I only have one question. What exacty is it you do here?"

Looking past him, I reminiced about before. "It's like this. All the working men in this town have been sent off to war. All that's left are old people, children, chocobos, dogs and cats. And I'm sure you've noticed but the monsters have made their way into town." I added, giving him a look. "This here town took real good care of me. So basically, I want to return the kindness. You're looking at the Monster Hunter of Winhill!" I boasted, puffing up in pride.

"So, as of today, you'll be my assistant. We're to patrol the town, up to the town entrance. If we see anyone in need along the way, we help them." I finished as I turned and started off.

Walking along the path to the flower shop, we fought a few Caterchipillars, and I laughed when a Bite Bug farted on Zack, making him gag and wince. Handing him a potion, I shrugged. "They do that." I said simply.

Continuing on, I was about to cross the chocobo crossing when I felt something run into my leg. Looking down, I noticed a baby chocobo fly up into the air before it took off in the other direction. Turning to Zack, I shrugged again. "That happens a lot, too."

I stepped to the other side and watched as Zack made to cross, only to have another fluffy, baby chocobo run into his leg. This one squacked loudly before fluttering off, and I winced with what I knew was coming next. "Uhh...Zack... You might wanna-"

I didn't get to finish warning him, when we both heard the sound of heaver footsteps and turned to find a large, adult chocobo running right at Zack. Not being able to dodge it, he got trampled, flying over the body of the chocobo as it ran past, and landing on his face.

"...move." I finished lamely before I cracked up laughing.

Zack got to his feet and glared at me as he quickly moved across the path. I ended up telling him that if the baby chocobos ran into people a lot, then the mother saw them as a threat.

Shaking my head, I continued on and we fought and defeated every monster we came across. I led him to the village entrance and gave him a brief tour along the way before we headed back.

"Alright! Our first patrol, complete! We're to report to the Commander and Assistant Commander." I told him as we started back.

"Commander... You mean the woman at the pub?"

Giving him a glare, I sighed. "Her name's Kat, ok? She saved my life. The Assistant Commander is Kelly." I told him pointedly.

"She seems like a nice person, but easily taken in by a hotshot."

_Really?_ Frowning, I thought about it before nodding in serious determination. "Ok, let's step up the patrol a notch. Assistant Zack, let's come up with a plan after we get back to the base."

Making it back to the bridge, I was once again stopped by Zack.

"Hey, Tommy... Are you doing this patrol thing every day?"

"Thing?!" I repeated incredulously. Couldn't he see how serious I was about this?? "What are you callin' 'THING'?!"

"Weren't you aiming to become a world-travelling journalist? you've heard of Timber Maniacs, right? I had a talk with the Chief Editor. He said he's interested in any article related to world travel." he stated, ignoring my comment and my tone.

"That's great!" I cried, jumping up in excitement.

"We should talk to him some time."

But then, that would mean leaving here. Leaving Kat and Kelly on their own. Leaving the town pretty much defenseless. "Y-Yeah." I said, less enthusiastically.

Taking a few steps forward, I hesitated, turning to Zack. "Um, would it be all right if we stayed here just a little while longer?"

He looked confused before a look of slight understanding crossed his face and he nodded. "You need more time to gether better material, right? This seems like a nice town, you gonna write about it?"

"No way!" I shook my head firmly for emphasis. "Can't make this place famous. Too much publicity, and you get all the tourists and stuff."

Now he looked like he understood fully. "You're afraid someone might come and steal Kat away? Tommy, you've changed man."

Blinking a moment I shook my head and took a step back, turning to face the town. "H-Hey! A monster!" Running off, I looked for and found a Caterchipillar to kill before we made our way to the bar.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the lower floor was empty, so I led the way up the stairs, pausing halfway up when I heard the sound of voices. Kat was talking to Kelly, and I was sure it was something we weren't supposed to hear.

"...What?" Zack whispered quietly.

I shook my head. "Girl talk...let's come back later." When Zack frowned and refused to move, I sighed. "Come on!" I hissed.

"Something inside of me is telling me to listen." he whispered back, refusing to move.

With a sigh, I leaned against the wall and followed his example hesitantly, listening to what was being said. Something told me I wasn't going to like this...

"Kat... Aren't yoo gonna marry Uncle Tommy?" Kelly asked innocently.

I almost choked on the air at that, covering my mouth and feeling my face heat up.

Kat stuttered for a moment. "A-A guy like that?" she asked in a shocked voice. "He was carried in here, crying like a baby, and I was the one who had to take care of him! His crude way of speaking..."

I frowned. Was I really that bad? Did she really hate me for it?

"I don't know if his aspirations as a journalist..."

That's right, too. Ever since coming here, I've had the chance to become a journalist, but I completely set it aside to fight for the town. For so long, I haven't even thought about it. I even forgot all about it until Zack mentioned it.

"Everytime I try to have a serious conversation, he avoids it..."

_Because my mind wasn't fully here and it was something that hurt me to talk about._ I thought sadly, taking a deep, silent breath and resting my head against the wall.

"I can't stand his snoring and he talks in his sleep...!"

_Not something I can really help._ I thought in bemusement.

Kelly sighed loudly. "But he's really nice! I really, really like him! Kat and Uncle Tommy and Kel should all be together!" she cried, sounding close to tears.

"...But you know..." Kat actually sounded like she was thinking about it, but seemed afraid. "I think what he really wants to do is travel all over the world. I don't think he has it in him to settle and live in a quiet little town like this... Some people are like that..." Shaking her head, she groaned. "...Ouuu, it makes me so mad!"

There was silence for a moment before Kelly's meek voice sounded, echoing through the small room. "...Yoo don't like him?"

"I feel the same as you, Kelly." she admitted softly.

Shaking my head, I snuck back down the stairs before opening and slamming the door shut and running back up them. _She really likes me? I'm gonna pretend I didn't hear anythin'._

"Oh!" Kat looked surprised to find us back and checked her watch, her eyes going wide.

"Yea! Yoo're back!" Kelly called happily, sliding off the couch to stand up and stare at him. "You should report to Commander!"

Nodding, I smiled and walked over to Kat, looking into her beautiful blue eyes as I saluted and faked seriousness. "Here's my report for today's patrol and monster extermination! Including, Buchubuchus and Bunbuns that Assisant Commander, Kelly oh-so-hates, I've exterminated 12 monsters!"

"Alright! Thank you." kat said with a slight bow as she smiled and nodded. "Shall we eat before we get started with the next patrol? I'll call you when it's ready, so why not wait in your room? You seem tired. You should take a quick nap." she said with genuine concern.

With a nod, I headed out of the bar, showing Zack to the place I'd been staying. Heading up to my room, I pointed out the old crib, and two single cots in the room, gesturing to the one he'd be using.

Looking at the bed sadly, I felt the fear come washing up again. It happened every time I laid down to sleep. Thoughts and doubts about if this was real. Would I wake up in Galbadia? Would I find myself in D-District Prison with the others by my side? What if we really all died in our escape? The same old fear.

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath. "Well now, shall we rest up a bit?" I asked Zack with a forced smile.

He looked at me a moment before sitting on the other cot and crossing his arms over his chest. "Hm? What's the matter?"

"I get scared sometimes..." I admitted quietly, turning back to the bed. "Scared of waking up somewhere else... Scared of not seeing Kelly..."

"Scared of not seeing Kat?" he supplied when I went silent.

I nodded. "What happened to me? I feel... What is this I feel?" Closing my eyes, I almost begged. "Oh, please let it be in this room when I wake up! Please let me still be in this puny bed!"

"Tommy, you've changed." Zack said softly, a look of understanding shining in his black eyes.

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Hope you like it.

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"Tell me what SeeD is. Miko demands to know."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	18. Prison Part 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

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(D-District Prison, Normal POV)

_...Where am I?_

Shaking his head as he sat up, Dustin checked out his surroundings. It looked like he was in a large and startlingly familiar room. No, not room..._cell_. The place wark dark and damp, with a constant drip of water in one corner of the room, and a sparking console on the far wall.

In the center of the room, Tori, Kapri and Marah sat with bored and almost defeated looks on their faces, turning to him when he stood up and walked over to sit beside them.

"Ahh, welcome back, Dustin." Tori said with a forced smile. "The Dream World again?"

He nodded.

"How's Tommy doin'?" Marah asked quietly.

Shrugging, Dustin sighed. "Dunno. I didn't see him. "It's not like I know everythin' about Jason, but... Well, you know how Tommy and company went to that Centra place and got into a real tight fix, right?" They nodded and he sighed again. "After that, Jason's been all alone. He's workin' in some prison-like place. And he's bored outta his mind! All he wants is to be fightin' alongside Tommy again."

There was silence for a moment before Tori frowned. "So, what is this we're experiencing?"

Rolling his eyes, Dustin raised his hands in a signal of cluelessness. "How the hell should I know?"

"I wonder what happened to Shane. Did they bring him here too?" Tori mused out loud.

Marah sighed. "Well, since were prisoners...shouldn't we be tryin' to break outta here??"

Kapri looked at Dustin for a moment. "Um, didn't you say Jason was working in some sort of prison?"

He nodded cluelessly. "Yeah, so?"

"And wasn't he from Galbadia?"

"Sure, he's a soldier there."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you supposed to be Jason in this 'Dream World'?"

Sighing in irritation, Dustin nodded again. "Just now I was."

"Does this room look familiar?"

_Of all the stupid ques-_ Looking around, Dustin's eyes went wide as he realized she was right. _Hey? Whoa?? Wait a sec..._ "I know this place!" Jumping into a standing position, he pumped his fist into the air. "Everyone listen up! This is the prison Jason works at! He's a janitor here! There's so many rooms just like this! It's got to be here!"

Sighing sadly, Kapri nodded. "There's a prison for political activists in Galbadia... This must be the place where Jason works at. Right here, where we are! I'm sure of it!"

"It's no surprise we're in jail, we did attack the sorceress." Tori put in with the same defeated tone.

Kapri's face paled. "We went up against the President. We'll all be sentenced to execution..."

"That President is no longer in charge." Tori reminded her, thinking back to the smoking body she'd spotted from the Gateway.

She nodded slowly. "Now that the sorceress is in control of Galbadia, I wonder what's going to happen to us...?"

"Things don't look so good." Marah agreed quietly.

Sitting back down heavily, Dustin felt the same sense of despair that the others felt and let his head drop. _What's gonna happen to us? And where the hell's that guy, Hunter? And Shane... Did the sorceress...?_ Unable to finish that thought, he swallowed heavily and shook his head, not wanting to think about it.

(Another Part of the Prison)

Slowly returning to the world of the living, Shane groaned and tossed his head to the side, struggling and succeeding to crack his eyes open a little. Things were blurry but blinking a bit and squinting, he noticed he was in a small cell, meant for only one person. It held a single bed, which he was lying on, and not much else.

Frowning, he closed his eyes tightly and lifted an arm to his aching head, noting how it felt like lead. _...Where am I?_ he thought, slowly managing to sit up, though it took a lot of energy. He felt weak and drained, pain coursing through his whole body but having no fixated point.

Remembering what happened, he frowned deeper and kept his eyes closed and head lowered.

_I...challenged Miko... My wound..._ His eyes flew open and he checked where he'd been hit by that ice blade, only to find a scar where the wound was. It had already been fully healed, but he was sure he was dead from the hit. _...? No wound... But how...? _He began to remember more. _The Galbadian Soldiers... We were surrounded. He was there...Blake, leering down at me._

Growling, Shane stood up straight and punched a nearby wall. "Damn you, Blake!" he hissed angrily. _You betrayed us!_

Suddenly, the cell began to shake, and Shane struggled to keep his balance, staggering around the cell as he felt it moving. _What...?_

(Back in the Cell, Kapri's POV)

Hearing a loud noice of something mechanical, I gasped and looked up with wide eyes, feeling all too alert.

"What, what?!" Marah called anxiously. "What was that loud noise?!"

The door to the cell flung open and three sneering guards entered, the biggest of the three walking forward and sneering even more at the prisoners. "It's the sound of your friend being tortured." he said coldly.

I felt my blood drain from my face as I stared at him in horror. _Friend?_ But we had two friends missing. Hunter and Shane. _But Shane.. _Feeling tears well up in my eyes, I shook my head quickly, refusing to think about what happened.

"What?!" Dustin yelled, getting in the guard's face. "Whaddaya mean?!"

"Shut up! Don't screw with me!" the guy yelled, grabbing him tightly by the throat and lifting him off the ground. "You understand who's in charge around here?"

Dustin clawed at the hand around his throat and glared at the man holding him, remaining silent.

"I asked you a question!!" the guard yelled shaking him a bit. Shaking his head, he grabbed his baton and hit Dustin on the side of the head, stunning him. Laughing evilly, he dropped him on the ground and the other two guards rushed in, aiming their guns in his face and beginning to kick him continuously in the stomach.

_No!_ I thought in horror, struggling to find a way to stop them. Shaking my head, I stood up and glared at them. "STOP!!"

They turned to me and the lead guy's eyes lit up. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot!" Leaning down to Dustin, he sneered. "Hey man, is there a Kapri with you?"

"I'm Kapri!" I answered before Dustin could make a smart comeback and get beaten more.

"Oh, all right." the guard answered giving me a suggestive glance. His eyes switched over Tori and Marah and then back to me. "Come over here, then." he said, walking to the door.

Swallowing heavily, I felt the cold shivers of fear run down my spine, but steeled myself and began to walk towards him.

"Whaddaya doing to Kapri, you lowlife!" Dustin roared, managing to lift his head off the ground.

The guard walked briskly back over and aimed another well placed kick to Dustin's stomach.

"STOP IT ALREADY!!!!" Tori screamed, jumping up and glaring dangerously at the guard.

"Stop." I said calmly, staring indifferently at the guard. _If it'll protect my friends..._ "I'll go."

"Kapri..." Tori started, looking concerned.

Though I've been here for a while, the displays of compassion and concern still always startled me. After a moment of getting over my surprise, I nodded and smiled. "I'll be fine." Turning to the guards, I gave them cold looks. "Let's go."

Heading out of the room, I began to wonder if going willingly was such a good idea, but being unarmed, we didn't stand a chance. Anything could wait for me out here, but I was determined to face it courageously. _I'll be strong for you...Shane._

(In Shane's Cell, Normal POV)

Leaning heavily against the wall, Shane panted for breath as the cell finally stopped moving. His vision swam in and out and he staggered back and forth, struggling to remain to consciousness.

It wasn't easy.

His whole body felt like lead, and he felt like he hadn't slept in ages. His mind was clouded with thoughts he couldn't make sense of, and he just couldn't keep his eyes open, despite how hard he tried.

The cell door suddenly opened and Shane quickly raised a hand to protect his eyes from the onslaught of bright light that shone in, squinting and wincing in pain. A single figure stepped into the cell and he took a shaky step backwards, trying to stay away from it.

"Shane, you're pathetic."

So it was Blake. _You're one to talk._ He thought darkly. _You betrayed everyone and everything you knew._

Before he could say any of it out loud, though, he felt a painful grip in his hair and a sudden force. Blake had grabbed him by the head and thrown him. Feeling the sudden impact with something a lot harder than his skull, hlet himself slide to the door, welcoming the darkness.

"Take him away!" was the last thing he heard, and the last thing he saw were two orange and yellow creatures, about the size of a large, stuffed animal, running in and squeeking as they ran to his side. The liiked a little like lions but like really kind and gentle lions and were covered in yellow and orange fur, with a small ball of yellow fire burning on the tip of their tails.

Waking up a little while later, he frowned as he opened his eyes and noticed that he was hanging off the ground. About 6 or 7 feet off the ground, to be exact, and he couldn't move his arms or legs.

Turning his head to each side, he saw that his wrists were secured to a large metal wall with thick metal cuffs, and his legs were secured in the same fashion. Still, struggling to break free, he winced as a pain shot through his skull, no doubt, from the impact his head made with whatever he hit.

"Ahh, you're awake."

Glaring down at the ground coldly, he saw one of those orange creatures dash away and Blake stared up at him with a leer. "I'm sure you can guess what happens now." he continued as he gestured to a man standing at a machine behind him with cables and wires that traveled to the wall Shane was fastened to.

Frowning, he definitely recognized the torture device, but refused to answer him. After a moment, he sighed. "...What do you want?"

At this Blake's expression turned serious and dangerous. "Tell me what SeeD is. Miko demands to know."

"SeeD..." _A code name, for Balamb Garden's elite mercenary force... SeeD... Combat specialists..._ Frowning, Shane thought... "Don't you already know?"

Giving a bitter laugh, Blake shook his head. "I'm not a SeeD."

_Oh yeah._

"There must be some kind of secret you're given when you become a SeeD." he continued, almost looking desperate to know.

_Not really._ Shaking his head, Shane rolled his eyes. "There's nothing. Even if there was, you think I'd tell you?" he spat, feeling his strength returning little-by-little.

"You're on my 'tough-nut-to-crack' list. Didn't think you'd talk that easily." he said with a grin that let slip a hint of respect.

Shane rolled his eyes again. "...Geez, I'm honored." he said sarcastically.

"So here's a little somethin' for ya." he continued as if not hearing a word Shane said. Snapping his fingers, the man flipped a switch, and voltage ran through Shane's body, making him shaking and grit his teeth, allowing a slight groan of pain to escape as he felt his heart clenching tightly, and his lungs deflate, not allowing any air in.

He stopped the machine and Shane sagged as much as the restraints would allow, breathing heavily as he struggled to remained conscious. The pain in his head and body had returned with a vengence and was threatening to knock him out.

"Even if you don't talk, others will. The instructor, the little messenger girl, or chicken wuss... He wouldn't last 3 seconds!" Blake boasted.

_Th-They're..._ Weakly lifting his head, Shane stared into Blake's eyes. "T-They're all...here?"

"Oh, you bet!" he exclaimed with an excited grin. "But since I like you so much, I thought you shgould go first." His eyes seemed to reminice. "I was hoping you'd be there, Shane. So, how'd I look in my moment of triumph? My childhood dream, fulfilled. I've become the sorceress' knight."

_...Sorceress' Knight..._ Shane thought dazedly. This was Blake's dream? This was what he always wanted? _His...romantic dream...? But...Blake...Now you're...just..._ "...A torturer." he managed to weakly whisper before he passed out from the pain.

Blake's face contorted into one of confusion. "What did you say?!" he demanded, anger shining bright in his eyes as a flash of purple shot through them. Taking a closer look at the limp form in front of him, he sighed. "Passed out cold, eh?" Raising his gunblade to the sky, he laughed. "This is the scene where you swear your undying hatred for me! The tale of the evil mercenary vs, the sorceress' knight!"

Lowering his blade so it pointed to Shane, he grinned evilly and spoke in a quiet voice. "The fun's just starting, Shane. Don't disappoint me, now!" Walking over to the machine, he sheathed his blade, pushed the man out of the way and flipped the switch, watching as Shane's body shook as the voltage ran through him, but he never once woke up.

(Prison Cell)

Dustin was up again. Well, at least he was sitting up. He had a nasty bruise on the side of his head from the impact with the baton, and easily some cracked ribs from the kicks, but he was alive. That ws made evident when Marah tried to draw a Cure spell from him, and then cast it on him.

"Draw...Cure!" she called.

The spell was cast, but instead of healing the wounds, it caused an overwhelming burning pain to rush through them, causing Dustin to whimper as he jerked around, trying to escape the spell. "Ow! Ow! Ow!" he chanted, wincing every time he tried to move.

Finally the effects seemed to fade and for all the pain they caused him, he did feel marginally better afterwards.

Tori sighed and shook her head. "It's no use. It seems there's an anti-magic field here."

The door opened and they all turned, finding a small, fluffly-looking lion-like creature with orange and yellow fur, and a small ball of fire on the tip of it's tail. It had compassionate eyes, and carried a tray of food in it's large front paws as it made it's way into the room.

A Moomba. They were a gentle race of sentient creatures, but for all they could understand, it was extremely rare to find one that could even say one human word. More often than not, you'd hear them squeeking to each other.

Then, it tripped, and the tray went flying.

The door opened again and the guard that beat Dustin from before entered, looking filled with rage at the mess before turning to look at the people in the room. "What was that noise?!" he demanded, obviously wondering who caused the tray to fall. Looking at the Moomba, he glared. "You again?!?" Shaking his head, he lifted his leg and kicked the little creature in the stomach.

_Damn him...that numbskull!_ Dustin thought, jumping up and balling up his fists. "YO! Who do you think you are?!" he shouted angrily.

Tori followed his lead and stared coldly at the soldier.

And Marah jumped up as well, glaring at the man. "Yeah, you big MEANIE! Stop that!!" she yelled.

The guard raised his baton at Dustin's head, but he swiftly grabbed it, throwing the arm behind him and pushing the guard away. Staggering back, the guard glared at them all and shook his head. "Y-You'll regret those words!" he shouted shakily, taking off.

"He's so mean..." Marah whined, crouching next to the small Moomba. "You ok?" The Moomba squeeked and stared at her. "Doesn't work so well, but..." Raising her hand, she cast a spell. "Cure!"

The light surrounded the Moomba and it squirmed. Once it faded, the little guy jumped up and squeeked again.

Apparently it worked after all.

(Torture Chamber)

Finally, after about an hour, Shane managed to regain consciousness, only to be met by Blake's sneering face. Looking around, he realized he was still on that damned device, and frowned deeply.

Pain coursed through his body from the attacks, and he sighed silently, not bothering to straighten up, though his arms were hurting from being restricted in those chains and the way he was slouched against the wall.

"Well now, Shane. I'll ask again. What is SeeD and why do they oppose the Sorceress?" Blake said in a calm, fairly pleasant voice.

_Seed...Oppose the sorceress...?_ he wondered in confusion.

A guard then ran in and saluted Blake. "Sire! The missiles targeted for the Garden are ready to launch!"

"Excellent." Blake grinned sadistically. Turning to Shane he laughed. "Balamb Garden is to be destroyed on charges of training SeeDs to oppose the sorceress."

Shane's eyes widened and his head shot up at that. _...WHAT?!?!_ Balamb Garden, his home, to be destroyed?! _But Headmaster Kanoi...Cam...Dr. Shayla..._

"It's a pity, really. I grew up there, too..." Blake mused, his eyes holding only the faintest hint of regret. "But orders are orders, and Miko wants it destroyed." he said with a grin and shrug.

"...N-No..." Shane weakly protested, fighting his restrainsts the best he could. _Don't, please!_

Ignoring him, Blake swung his blade around with a wicked, excited grin. "After the Garden's gone, the SeeD hunt will begin. I'll be Miko's bloodhound and hunt down every one of your kind." Placing his blade away, he stopped and laughed before grinning evilly at Shane. "It'll be fun, Shane. Don't die on my yet." Turning to the guard, he nodded. "Continue with the interrogation." he ordered before walking off.

The guard stalked over and grinned. "Ready to talk?"

Looking at him in honest confusion, Shane struggled to shrug a little. "I...don't understant...the question..." he admitted out loud.

"Don't mess with me! Miko says you know something! Now spit it out!" he yelled angrily, backtracking to the machine as he glared at Shane. "Talk!! What is SeeD all about ?!" he shouted, pulling the switch and electrocuting Shane.

_SeeDs... Aren't we...mercenaries from Balamb Garden... Special Forces...?_ Shane thought weakly as his lungs constricted again and his vision swam dangerously.

The guard flipped the switch off and walked over. "Hm? Yeah, so?" he said, tapping his foot on the floor impatiently.

_I...I don't know...anything... W-Why...do you...keep...asking...me...?_ _...Just let m-me...die..._ Pulling on the last of his strength, Shane looked up and glared at the guard, managing to weakly croak something.

"What's that?" the guy asked, coming closer.

"...Your..."

Frowning, he shook his head and walked even closer. "What did you say?"

Smirking weakly, Shane shook his head. "Your...breath st...stin...stinks!"

Glaring at him, the guard practically ran to the switch. "Punk! You asked for it!" Flipping the switch, he laughed loudly as Shane was electrocuted. "How's that?! Huh? How do you like me now?!?!"

Letting the darkness overcome him, Shane sighed in relief. _...Goodnight..._

"Tch! Completely knocked out! Hey!" Looking to an open doorway, the man spotted two Moombas. "You two Moombas! Watch him!"

Waiting for the Moombas to run over, he nodded and walked out. As soon as he was out of sight, the Moombas turned to each other. "Tommy!" one squeeked. The other looked at the unconscious Shane and nodded. "Tommy!" it squeeked back.

One ran to a green button and boosted the other on it's back. Hitting the button, they spun to watch as Shane was released and he slid down the wall to land in a sitting position, still unconscious.

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Don't ask me how the Moombas know Tommy or that Shane's linked to him, 'cause I got no idea. LOL.

Hope you like it.

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"Well, we can't rely on magic here, so we have to go with weapons. So we have to somehow get them back."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	19. Prison Part 2

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

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(The Cell)

_What now...?_ Dustin sighed as he leaned against the wall.

Tori sighed and pulled her knees up to her chest. "We can't just sit here. We have to think of a way to escape." she said in a quiet tone.

_Easier said than done..._ Dustin shrugged and remained where he was. "Anyone got a plan?"

Marah looked around until her eyes landed on the Moomba next to her. "Well, we could always skin this little guy and wear him as a disguise." she suggested.

The Moomba squeeked in terror and scooted to the opposite corner of the room, staring at her warily.

"I'm kidding! I'm kidding!" she insisted with a weak laugh.

_Didn't sound like you were._ Dustin thought with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, we can't rely on magic here, so we have to go with weapons. So we have to somehow get them back." Tori suggested with a nod.

_Weapons..._ Dustin thought, looking at his hands. Eyes widening, he flexed the metal-lined gloves and grinned. _My weapons are these fists of mine!_ Jumping up, his grin grew. _I could do some serious damage without weapons! It's up to me, baby!_ Turning to the girls, he laughed. "Let me go. I'll get the weapons back!"

"Oh yeah!" Marah nodded with sudden understanding. "You worked here as Jason, so you know the place."

_Not really... All he did was mop the floors._ "Just leave it to me! You two lie down there, on the floor." he instructed with a determined nod, moving quietly to the door.

Exchanging confused looks, they shrugged and did what they were told, lying down and faking that they were unconscious.

"Dustin..." Tori called warily.

Marah frowned a little before relaxing her face. "Sure hope this works."

Taking a deep breath, Dustin schooled his face to look worried. "Guard! Guard! We need some help! Open the door!" he called in as frantic a voice as he could muster.

The door opened up and a single guard walked in, frowning at Dustin before carefully looking around. "What's the problem?" he demanded coldly.

"The women are unconscious! I think a snake bit 'em!" _Please, PLEASE buy this!_

Walking over to the girls with him, the guard frowned deeper and his eyes narrowed in confusion. "...What?"

Before he could react, Dustin punched him in the face, followed by a swift kick to the gut, and knocked him out. Watching as the girls sat up and looked relieved to see that it worked, he nodded to them with a grin. "Well, I'm off!" Seeing the Moomba run over and squeek next to his legs, he looked down at it. "Huh? You wanna go too?"

The Moomba squeeked again and nodded it's head vigorously.

"Ah, I guess... Just don't get in the way." he stated firmly, though deep inside he was secretly glad not to be going alone.

The two of them headed out into the hall and paused for a brief moment. The outter hall was a large circle with at least three cells on the floor. Then there was a larger opening in the center that spanned at least 20 floors. From his memories as Jason, Dustin knew that opening was used for a crane to lift single cells from floor to floor.

Turning to his left, he noted a set of stairs leading up and a second set that led down.

"So which way do I go?" he asked the Moomba cluelessly.

In response, the little red lion ran to the staircase that led up and waited at the bottom with a squeek.

Shrugging, Dustin ran over to them and they ran to the stairs, finding two guards looking over a pile of weapons. A Gunblade, Nun Chucks, and a Whip all lay on the floor, while a guard picked up the blade.

"Look at this...SeeD weapons." one guard mused out loud.

Swinging the blade experimentally, the guard nodded. "Is this what they call a gunblade?" Looking to the other weapons he whistled quietly. "Check these out. A whip, nun chucks..."

"AHEM!!"

Spinning around to the sound of Dustin clearing his throat, they gaped a moment before dropping the confiscated weapons and producing their own. "You an escapee?!" one guard demanded.

Without even bothering to answer, he raced forward and slammed his fist into one guard's gut, winding him temporarily as he ran at the other. Seeing that the second was aiming his gun, he quickly kicked it out of his hands before jumping up and doing a spin kick to the guy's head. Backflipping away, he landed in a crouch and sprung forward, levelling a volley of punches at the first guard's head and knocking him out. Spinning to the other, he punched him in the gut and kicked him in the head, effectively knocking him out as well.

"Piece of cake, baby!" he cheered, picking up the weapons and taking a moment to laugh. Running back to the cell, he grinned triumphantly at the girls. "Yo, sorry to keep ya waitin'!"

"Dustin, the weapons?" Tori asked in a bored tone.

"Voila!" Producing the weapons, he attached the gunblade to his belt and handed out the other weapons to their rightful owner.

"Yes!" Tori cried happily, jumping up and accepting her whip. Snapping it experimentally against the ground, she nodded in satisfaction and hung it on her hip.

Marah grabbed her nun chucks and swung them skillfully around her before hanging them off her waist and grinning happily. "Whoo-hoo!" she cried, jumping up and laughing.

There was a sound of footsteps outside the door and everyone spun to it, hiding their weapons and watching in shock at who entered.

"Is this the cell with the uncooperative prisoners?" a familiar feminine voice demanded harshly.

A second voice that they recognized as their jailor's, answered almost meekly. "Yes, this is it. Please give 'em something to really complain about."

"Should we be picking on prisoners so soon after transfer?" a third familiar voice inquired.

"Just be quiet and let me handle this!" the woman demanded.

The guard entered the room and glared angrily at the three prisoners, failing to notice the badly hidden weapons. "T-These are the prisoners, Lieutenant Toxica, Private Jindrax!"

_Toxica? Jindrax??_ Dustin mentally wondered, remembering the names from Dollet.

Once the group faced off against each other, they could only stare in shock at whom they were facing, except for Tori and the Guard who had no idea what was going on. Glaring fiercely at them, Toxica pointed. "S-So, we meet again! Now we'll teach you the lesson we should've taught you earlier!" Then she seemed to consider. "I know it might seem cowardly to fight unarmed prisoners..."

Shaking their heads, Dustin, Marah and Tori drew their weapons, cracking and snapping them loudly to show that they weren't as 'unarmed' at Toxica seemed to think.

And of course, she didn't even seem to notice. "..But I hope you can appreciate our position. Hey, it's a dog eat do world..."

"Uh, ma'am?" Jindrax interrupted quietly and nervously. "They're fully armed, ma'am."

"WHAT?!" _Now_ she seemed to notice their weapons and took a single step back. "H-Ho-How...? Ahh, hell with it! Let's go, Jindrax!"

Stepping back, Dustin smirked and raced forward. Seeing that Toxica was aiming to stab him with her staff, he jumped to the side and ran along the wall before jumping off and spin kicking her in the shoulder, knocking her a foot away. Landing on the ground, he quickly pressed his attack and raced forward, reaching out to push her staff to the side before he did a backflip, kicking her in the head.

Tori snapped her whip at Jindrax, catching him in the shoulder and causing him to drop one of his daggers. He reached for it, but before he could grab it, Marah snapped her nun chucks out and smacked him in the hand, causing him to let out a howl of pain before he pulled his hand back and glared at her. Snapping her whip at the same time as Marah cracked her nun chucks, they hit him together, in the stomach and sent him flying into a wall, where he hit with a dull thud and slid down, lying unmoving on the ground.

Dustin raised both his ams, crossed over each other, and blocked Toxica's staff as it made a mad descent to his head. Pushing upward, he lashed out and punched her twice in the chest and once in the stomach.

Staggering back, she collapsed to the ground and laid unmoving.

And during the whole thing, the jailor had run off.

Running out of the room, they failed to notice that Toxica was still conscious, and as soon as they were out of sight, she groaned and pulled herself to a wall, sliding a keycard into a slot and hitting a large red button. "D-Don't think you can just walk out..." she groaned before finally passing out.

Out in the hallway, everyone was looking around, trying to find some clue as to where to find Shane. Turning to the Moomba, Dustin asked it if it had any idea where Shane was, but it shook it's head and squeeked quietly.

"I guess not. We'll find Shane, and then we get outta here, got it?"

Suddenly, an alarm began to blare and red lights began flashing through the hallway. Running to the center lift hole, they looked up and down, realizing it was on every floor.

"What the...?!?!" Dustin demanded, tightening his gloves and keeping an eye out for danger.

"Warning! Escapee alert! Monsters will be set lose on each floor. If escapees refuse to surrender, you have permission to kill. The anti-magic field will be lifted." an automated voice called out calmly.

"Tch! The security alarm!" Dustin growled, staring angrily around.

The Moomba's ears suddenly perked up and it squeeked loudly and happily before beginning to purr. Waving it's paws at the others, it ran to a staircase heading up and ran up it, not bothering to wait for them.

"I guess we head up then." Tori said with a little grin, leading the way up the stairs.

Heading up every flight of stairs they found, the SeeD trio battled guards, large vulture-like birds with blue bodies and grey heads, large, yellow, metal machines that's weapons were it's fists, and purple and black machines of the same size with metal wings that shot rockets at them.

After one battle with those, the party had to take a brief breather to heal up. Those missiles did a lot of damage and knocked Marah out with one hit. Kneeling down beside her, Dustin lifted her head into his lap and used a phoenix down to revive her and then gave her a hi-potion to cure her wounds.

With that done, they made their way to the top floor, finding it to glow orange from a single, large light on the ceiling, and other than a set of stairs leading up and the cell lift, there was one door.

One door with about 7 Moombas standing outside of it.

"What the hell?" Dustin asked quietly, walking through the Moombas, towards the door.

"Tommy!" one squeeked, jumping excitedly and purring.

Another one jumped in response. "Tommy!"

Then two more. "Tommy!"

The Moomba by the door waved at them before waving it's paw over the door and the trio watched as it slid open. Running to the side, the Moomba bounced around before running inside.

"O...k." Dustin said with wide eyes, wondering how these things were connected to Tommy.

Walking into the room, they found who they'd been searching for. Shane was sitting against the wall, only _barely_ conscious.

(Shane's POV)

It was so dark and I was so tired. Drawing my leg just a little bit higher to me, I became aware that I wasn't restrained anymore.

"Hey!"

I frowned. That voice seemed so familiar. I wanted to open my eyes to see who it was, but I was having trouble. My eyelids felt so heavy and my body felt like stone. _Who...?_

"Shane!!!"

That sounded like...Dustin, but it couldn't be. They were captured. How could they be here.

_They're SeeDs_.

Of course, if anyone could escape a prison, it would be them. But I didn't understand why they'd come looking for me and didn't just leave.

"Wake up!!!"

Marah?

I felt someone shaking me, and a strange, furry sensation on my face. Something soft brushing against it. I could only frown deeper as I struggled even more to open my eyes or at least say something.

"Come on, Shane!!"

Tori.

Somehow, I wasn't surprised. Letting out an exhausted groan, I felt a soothing, warm sensation run through me and finally managed to open my eyes. Standing in front of me was Dustin, Marah, Tori and a Moomba.

I guessed that the Moomba was the furry sensation on my face.

_I'm...fine..._ I thought, nodding a little as I shakily got to my feet, leaning heavily against the wall behind me. Blinking a couple of times, I shook my head and managed to focus. Watching silently, I noticed Dustin checking out the Moomba curiously and Tori cast a Cura on me, restoring my strength.

I nodded thanks to her.

'You ok?!" Dustin demanded in worry.

Remembering everything I'd been through, I shuddered involuntarily and sighed, closing my eyes. "...It was hell..." I said honestly.

He nodded and dug at my gunblade that was hanging on his waist. "Let's just get the hell outta here!" he stated firmly, unclipping it and looking at me. "Catch!"

It was like instinct. He tossed me my blade and I caught it easily, despite the aching of my joints. Swinging it experimentally, I nodded and fastened it to my belt, standing away from the wall.

Looking at the Moomba, I nodded and bent down to it.

"Tommy! Tommy!" It cried, jumping a bit.

I frowned at this. "Tommy?" Shaking my head, I patted it gently on the head before standing up and leading the others out of the room. Standing out in the hall, I paused and did a double take, noting the numerous Moombas standing there with furry litte lion-grins on their faces.

One ran up to me. "Tommy! MMMake ssshortcut! FFFloor...wwwhere?" it asked awkwardly.

Most floors had shield between the stairscases, making it difficult to get to each floor because you had to run around the entire hall to get to the other staircase. It gave the soldiers and monsters a better chance to get to you.

"Floor 9." I said quietly, just shrugging and choosing a random floor. It squeeked happily and leaned into my leg, purring, before it ran off and down the stairs.

"Tommy!" Another one suqeeked, handing me a couple of hi-potions it held. Then it too, leaned agains me and purred before running off.

_What the hell??_

"Didn't you come here as Tommy, in the Dream World?" Dustin asked curiously.

I shook my head. _No, I ended up in a village called Winhill with Zack, and some woman named Kat._ "...No." Shaking my head, I sighed, then I frowned. _But that little girl...she looked so familiar._

"So Shane doesn't know how to get out of here, either." Tori mused out loud.

"Well...either way, we kept goin' up and up. I think we better head back down." Dustin suggested thoughtfully.

Tori shook her head. "It'd be a pain to go every floor." she stated. "The alarm alerted monsters and security guards everywhere."

"By the way, how the hell did they carry you up here, Shane?" Dustin demanded as he scrunched up his forehead.

Remaining silent, I pointed to the claw that still held the cell I had been in. Notcing the large red stain inside, I bit back a wince.

"Whoa!! What's this?!?" he cried in shock.

Sighing, I rolled my eyes. "It's like a crane that can carry a detachable cell from downstairs." I explained in a bored tone.

Marah walked to the edge of the hole and looked down it thoughtfully. "Oh, so this big hole goes _all_ the way down to the bottom? So, if we jump _all_ the way down, we're outta here!" she cried excitedly.

Tori's eyes widened and she shook her head, taking a step back. "Go ahead, if you want to be squished like a pancake."

"Oh yeah!!! I remember now!!" Dustin cried. "We can move this arm by using the panel above and the control room."

I looked above the cell and noticed a small box on the crane. It was like a control room of sorts and had enough room to fit four or five people.

"I remember Jason doing this. But we need to operate them at the same time. Someone needs to stay upstairs, and the control panel..."

Marah and Tori both grinned before moving to either side of Dustin. Giggling a little, they patted him on the shoulder simultaneously and nodded at his surprised look.

"...Me?" he asked nervously.

They nodded again and he sighed, his nervous look changing to one of determination. "F-Fine. I'll give you instructions from upstairs. Everyone get inside."

With that, we split up. I helped Tori and Marah into the panel and then climbed in myself, standing in front of a console and waiting for Dustin. It only took a couple of minutes, but in here, every minute felt like an eternity. I was almost beginning to worry that Dusti hadn't made it when his voice came crackling over the intercom.

"Yo, can you guys here me?"

"Hiya Dustin, loud and clear!? Marah called back with a grin.

"So what do we do?" I asked casually, looking at the panel. He instructed me to press a large red button in the center of it, and I did so, quickly grabbing the hilt of my gunblade when the lift shook a moment. Then I calmed down as I realized it was just beginning it's descent.

It didn't take long before we ended up at the bottom floor, and we jumpd out of the room, frowning when all that met us was a long dark hallway with a single door at the end.

"Heey, so what are we going to do now?" Marah asked with a pout.

"Well, there's a door there..." I pointed out.

Tori looked at me. "...And?"

Smacking my forehead I wondered if they were being this irritating on purpose. _Isn't it obvious?_ "...Let's check it out."

Stalking forward, I put a hand on the handle and paused. Something about this door didn't seem right. Looking at it closely, I noticed it almost seemed slightly indented, like something really heavy leaned against the other side.

Still, it was the only way out that we knew of.

Turning the handle, I felt the door swing in, and jumped a couple of feet back as a pile of sand slid in, almost burying me alive.

"...Sand?!" Tori cried in shock. "Buried? You mean we're underground?" With a sigh, she shook her head and turned to me. "Well, in any case, we can't get out from here..."

Suddenly, the sound og gunfire from above us caught our attention.

"Gunfire?" Tori questioned in confusion, probably trying to think of why they'd opened fire above us.

I nodded as a thought hit me. "Sounds pretty bad..."

Then Tori and Marah's eyes widened. "DUSTIN!!!" they yelled in unison.

"Let's go back, quick!" Tori urged as they ran to the lift.

Quickly following them, we took the lift up to the floor the gunfire was coming from, only to find Dustin being held at gunpoint by some big guy. Frowning deeply, I grabbed my gunblade and shot out of the lift, slicing the guard across the back and killing him before he could shoot Dustin.

As I stood back up, I turned to look at the fallen guard with a raised eyebrow. "Didn't think he'd go down so easily."

"Shane!!!" Running forward, Dustin fell on his knees and hugged me tightly. _What the hell?!_ "H-Hey! What?! Let go." I said calmly, trying to pry his arms off me. When that didn't work, I hit him on the head a few times with the hilt of my gunblade. "I said, let go!" I stated firmly.

Reluctantly, he let go and nodded, standing up straight.

"Shane! Dustin!" Tori called as she and Marah ran up. Sighing in relief, she nodded to Dustin. "I'm glad you're all right."

Marah turned to me with a sly grin and cocked her head to the side. "Shane, why did you go on your own? Is Dustin really that important to you?"

I smacked my forehead with my palm and sighed loudly, shaking my head.

Suddenly, there was more gunfire and we all ducked down, moving to the railing of the hole to shield ourselves from being shot. We looked around for some sort of exit, but we were pinned. If we made a run for either flights of stairs, we would be shot.

"There's no way outta here!" Dustin shouted angrily.

That's when some shots rang out louder than the others, and pained cries were heard from the guards as the gunfire lessened and gradually came to a stop.

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Don't know what to say. I'm tired and sore. LOL. Pretty much I'm breaindead. LOL. Then again, doing a face plant at the gym didn't exactly help. LOL!

Hope you like it.

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"Power Rangers had it good."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	20. Prison Part 3

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

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(Normal POV)

Hunter came sauntering down the stairs with a cocky smirk on his face as he held up his rifle, stopping only long enough to fire at a single guard before prancing on.

"Come on...!"

Behind him, Kapri raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest, walking slowly behind him. Seeing the way he was taking his time, she scowled before walking briskly down the stairs behind him and pushing him down the rest, giggling as he tumbled down them to lay with his back against the railing and shake his head with a dazed look.

"Stop trying to act so cool!" she stated firmly when she stopped laughing. "Gee, if only you had agreed with me eariler, we wouldn't be in this mess."

Seeing something move out of the corner of her eye, she spun and raised her crossbow, pausing with her hand over the trigger when her eyes landed on a pair of mildly surprised chocolate ones. Looking closely at the all too familiar chocolate skin, hair and eyes, the scar that ran between his eyes, and the gunblade he held at his side, she took a shaky breath, lowering her weapon as she crouched down, bowing her face as she closed her eyes and took another deep breath.

"Shane!!!" _Shane's alive! I knew he would be. Shane's ok!_ "Yeah!" Laughing quietly in relief, she felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her chest and looked up to see his confused gaze before he switched it to Tori as she spoke.

"Kapri, you're all right!"

Hunter stood and nodded with that smirk again. "Uh-huh. Of course. Thanks to my escort."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Dustin demanded suspiciously.

Smacking Hunter on the arm, Kapri walked past him to the others. "My father pulled some strings with the military. He told them to get me, and only me, out." she said with a clearly upset face. Shaking her head, she placed her hands on her hips and glared at Hunter. "So this guy here... He came and got me. Just me! Knowing you were all captured!"

"Ahh, that's.." Hunter tried, clearly looking embarrassed.

"Isn't that horrible?!" she demanded, cutting him off.

"Alright! Alright! ..." Hunter sighed and frowned, shaking his head a little. "I said I was sorry! That's why I'm here to help!" Then he rubed at some red scratch marks on his cheek.

Pointing to them, Kapri raised an eyebrow. "After I scratched you to death."

"Uh..." Blushing a little, he shrugged. "A-A-Anyhow...now's our chance to get out of here."

Shane sighed and shook his head, folding his arms over his chest. _I'm glad to see Kapri's alright, but..._ "The basement door is buried in sand."

"Of course it is." Hunter stated, rolling his eyes. "This place is buried underground."

"...Buried?" he asked with a frown. _Then how the hell do we get out of here?!_

"That's right. The prison is..."

"There they are! It's the escapees!"

Everyone turned to find more guards running into the room, guns drawn and aiming as fast as they could. Dropping down behind the railing, with the rest of the group, Hunter periodically peered out over the top, firing off his rifle and holding the guards at bay.

Turning to Shane he sighed. "Shane, choose two people to go with you, and head up. I'll hold them here."

"...Up?" he asked in confusion.

"I don't have time to explain! Just go! The exit's up there! Trust me!" Hunter called seriously as he fired at another guard before reloading his rifle.

"Alright." he agreed quietly.

"I think I know the way." Kapri put in with a determined nod.

_Well that settles that then. It's me, Kapri and..._ Making a quick decision, he chose Tori to come with them. Her Blue Magic ultimate attack could definitely come in handy.

As the three ran up a nearby staircase, Hunter smirked and shot another guard before nodding. "It's my time to boogie now."

Motioning for Marah and Dustin to follow him, they headed down a nearby staircase, immediately running into a battle with a few monsters. Drawing second level magics including Tornado, Cura, Fira, Thundara, Watera and Blizzara, they finished the battle quickly.

Going to the staircase, Hunter pressed his hand forward, checking for a barrier. When he didn't find one, he nodded and smirked, stepping through and leading the others down a nearby staircase and onto a lower floor.

"Hey, what do we do?" Marah asked in a somewhat bored tone. Then her eyes widened. "I got an idea!"

It was obvious they couldn't follow Shane and the others because they needed to lead the guards away. If they couldn't go up that way...

"Can't we go up again, using the arm?"

Hunter nodded and smirked, already knowing about the arm from a drunk prisoner in an open cell. "Hey, that's a great idea!"

"But..." her face fell as she seemed to think of a kink. "They have to operate it from the Control Room upstairs."

Dustin's face lit up and he shot to the nearby staircase that led down. "Leave it to me! Alright! Let's head down to the floor where the arm's stopped!"

Running down the floors, one at a time, they fought many monsters and guards and by the time they were done, they had to pretty much carry Dustin, who was bleeding from a gash in his side.

"Hey! Hop on!" Hunter called, helping Dustin and Marah into the arm before he cast a Cura on the martial artist's wound and nodded as it healed closed.

(With Shane, Kapri and Tori, Kapri's POV)

Running up the floors like this, I bit my lip to keep the almost hysterical laugh from escaping. Sure our lives were in danger, but for some reason, I got this absurd thought about what it must be like to be a Power Ranger.

Then I frowned as a small pang of guilt gnawed at my heart.

These people, these SeeDs... They're just like the people I used to know. Shane, just as cold, at times, as the Shane I knew, and having just as much trouble expressing his feelings. Marah, as exciteable and overenthusiastic as the one I remembered, and Tori... She had the same sense of responsibility, and an air of authority about her.

But they didn't know. They didn't know about my other life... My life as an Evil Space Ninja.

Part of me wanted to tell them, but it was hard. For one I had no idea where to begin, what time would be best, how to word it properly, and I knew they wouldn't believe me. And then there was a part that didn't want to tell them. A part that almost wanted to forget my past on another world.

I mean, Merrick Baliton wasn't really my father. Kimberly Heartily wasn't really my mother. They were parents to a girl that died secretly over two years ago. Sure, I don't remember much of anything about my parents, but I knew it wasn't _them_.

Chancing a glance at Shane, I knew he'd be beyond royally pissed if I let slip that everything was a lie. Ok, so I really turned good, and I like to help people and fight evil, but everything he knew about me... My home, my family, my friends...my past... It was all a lie.

Now I couldn't help the sarcastic laugh that escaped my throat as we ran.

_If they knew...would they treat me the same way as the Rangers back on earth?_ No. That wasn't right. I knew that the earth Rangers would have accepted me if I'd changed my ways back then, but my fear of Lothor stopped me.

"Power Rangers had it good." I said bitterly, knowing they didn't have to _fear_ their Sensei. They weren't called 'airheads' or 'morons' or 'idiots' everytime one little thing went wrong!

"Power Rangers?" Shane echoed in confusion.

Jumping at the sound of his voice, I quickly shook my head, not even knowing what to say to cover my slip. "Nothing. Nevermind." I said quietly as we stopped for a breather in a small cell, housing a single man.

He didn't look convinced and I shook my head again, sighing in exhaustion and irritation. "Please, just let it go." I pleaded, staring at him as firmly as I could. "It's part of a past-another life, that I'd like to forget, thank you."

"...Alright." he agreed, almost looking concerned.

Continuing on our way, we quickly made it to the Control Room and exited via a small door that led to a long bridge. As we looked across the other side, I noticed another building and that, that was our way out.

"We made it out!" Tori called happily, making her way to the bridge.

Seeing something near her feet, I felt my heart skip a beat and took a step forward myself. "Tori sto-"

A loud alarm sounded, cutting off my words.

"Prisoners may not go beyond this point. You will be terminated." a pleasant feminine, automated voice called over the speakers.

Tori looked at me in confusion, and I sighed and pointed to her feet, where she was standing right in the middle of a security beam that sounded the alarm when she crossed it.

There was a loud sound of something rushing through the air, and Shane quickly drew his gunblade, prompting Tori and me to arm ourselves. "They're coming!" he yelled, gesturing with his head to the sky.

Looking ahead, I noticed a soldier dressed in a red battle suit with very thick and heavy chest, arm and leg plating, running along the bridge before stopping in front of us. Next, two of the metal machines flew out of the sky on their metal wings, landing on either side of him. GIM52As. They now fully blocked our escape route.

Turning back to the other door, I frowned and took a defensive stand as I noticed it was shut tightly. "We're trapped!" I called.

Shane glanced briefly at the door before nodding to me. "...Then we fight!"

The first thing we did when the battle began, was to eliminate the soldier, as he put protective magics on the GIM52As. Once he was gone, and despite his tougher appearance, he was easily beaten, we focused on the GIMs.

Tori closed her eyes, holding her arms at her chest before she cast them out, glowing a bright white. Thick strands of spider silk shot from her chest and covered the machines, slowing them down immensely.

Shane ran forward, slicing one about six times before he backflipped, slicing it again, and jumped back. Then he raced forward and repeated the process on the other one. Holding his blade with both hands, he held it straight up, ppointing to the sky. A golden beam of light surrounded his blade and shot up into the sky, no doubt, leaving the planet all together. Then he swung his blade down in an arc, a wave of energy sliding across the machines and knocking them back a foot.

One of the GIMs unfolded it's wings and raised it's arms as a volley of missiles shot out and hit Tori. They knocked her into a wall, where she laid unmoving. Then the other cast Silence on Shane and me, preventing us from casting magics.

With a frown, I stuck my tongue out at the monsters before rushing to Tori's side. _They may have stopped me from casting magics, but I still got potions and phoenix downs._ Using some of the said items, I helped Tori to her feet and returned to the batte as Shane finished using an echo screen and handed one to me.

With the Silence gone, I closed my eyes and focused on a Thundara spell, casting it quickly on both of the GIMs and watching as Tori did the same.

Once the second bolt hit them, they both collapsed and I stared at them with a smirk. _HAH!_

"Hey Shane, can you guys here me?" came a faint voice from back in the Control Room.

I followed Shane's gaze as he turned with a frown and walked back into the Control Room, via the now open door. Heading to a beeping console, we stood patiently, listening for the voice.

"Hey! Hey, you guys!"

It was Hunter's voice calling.

"Is this the thing you were talking about?" Marah's voice asked curiously. "But,,, What if Shane and the others have left already?!"

"I can hear you." he reposnded with a badly hidden grin.

Raising my eyebrow, I bit my lip to keep from making a comment. But it seemed, Shane was letting people get closer to him. Maybe he didn't realize it, but it looked like the others were becoming more important to him.

I felt tears come to my eyes and turned away. _But...does he feel the same way about me?_ Part of me wanted him to, but then again, I would feel guilty if he did. I still feel like I've done nothing but lie to him, to _them_, and they don't even suspect a thing.

"See?" came Hunter's cocky voice. "I told you we'd be alright! Shane, go ahead and activate the arm!"

Turning back, I watched as he raised an eyebrow before his forehead cresed and he looked around the console in confusion. "...How?" he eventually asked.

"Yo, leave that one to me." Dustin said, clearly tampering with something.

"Is...it supposed to go this slow?" Marah asked tentatively.

"What's the rush?" Hunter asked back and I could almost _hear_ the smirk and shrug as he asked it.

Laughing a little, I sighed and turned to walk to the door. "Looks like they'll be just fine." I said easily as I walked through.

Stepping back out to the bridge, I looked over the large metal railing, seeing out of the corner of my eye that Shane and Tori were doing the same. I frowned at what I saw.

Desert. Seemingly endless desert. Vast piles of sand for miles in every direction, and the occasional Sand Shark or Sand Worm swimming around in it. Beyond the desert, I knew, was barren lands. There were many places we could go from here. Back to Deling City, the nearby Galbadian Missile Base, or a Train Depot.

Still, what got me wasn't the vast desert, but the fact that the prison had changed from when I entered with Hunter. Before, it was all at ground level. The bridge, that is. If I'd wanted to, I could've jumped over the railing and landed safely on the ground.

But now...

The buildings had risen. The bridge was easily 60 feet in the air, if not more, and there was no safe way down, but to cross the bridge.

"We're stuck!" Tori cried, seeing the ground so far below us.

I nodded with a frown, pulling away from the railing to look at the others. "What I wouldn't give to have a zord right about now." I muttered quietly.

"...Huh?"

Seeing that Shane was regarding me in confusion, I felt my face heat up. "I...uh, said... No way!" I made a face of shock as I turned to look out over the railing. "When I came in earlier, it wasn't like this!" _Please buy it, please buy it!_

Looking past me to the building on the other side of the bridge, he nodded distractedly. "Let's just head for that building over there."

I turned and looked at the building before nodding and beginning to run across it. It took me a few minutes at a fast pace to cross the whole thing, and panting, I turned to find Tori run up beside me and Shane only a few feet behind us.

Suddenly, the floor of the bridge began to fold up on itself, dropping away as it slowly began to pick up speed, heading Shane's way. I watched in growing horror as he stared in shock at it a moment before turning and running in the other direction. "Hurry, Shane!" I yelled in a panic.

The bridge was dropping away faster and faster, the empty space growing closer and closer to his feet as he ran.

_No, please!_ I mentally prayed, but it was no use. As I watched helplessly, the floor dropped away from beneath his feet and he fell. "SHANE!!!" I screamed, staggering to the side and leaning against a wall when my legs turned to rubber on me. Shaking my head, I stared at where he'd stood, only to see a black booted foot swinging by the side railing before disappearing on the other side.

"Wh...Shane?" Carefully making my way to the railing, I looked over to see the very man I thought had fallen to his death, clinging to a pipe that ran along the railing, to the wall. "Shane! Hold on!" I cried, panicking. Looking around at the wall, I noticed a blinking alert light that was just above the pipe, and nother thick pipe above it that could act as steps for him to get up.

"Shane!!" When he looked at me, I waved to the light, pointing out the pipe and ledge of the light that he could climb. "Over here!"

Watching helplessly, I bit my lip hard as I watched him shimmy his way over to the light before managing to swing a hand onto it. Pulling himself up, I reached down, waiting for his arm to come into reach. He grabbed the pipe and looked up, seeing my hand. Without wasting another moment, he pulled himself up sharply and grabbed my hand.

Than a gloved hand shot down and wrapped around the back of his wrist.

Looking at Tori, I nodded and together we pulled him up, safely on the solid, unmoving ground of the second building, just outside the door. "That was way too dangerous, wasn't it...?" I questioned with a nervous smile as I watched him pant for air. He was still staring out over the space the bridge had been, with wide eyes, but after a moment he closed them tightly and nodded before getting up and turning his back on it.

"Yeah." he replied quietly, heading into the room.

We quietly and quickly descended to the bottom floor and found two vehicles waiting for us. A grey military vehicle and a yellow jeep. And, we found our friends waiting there for us.

Tori took a few moments to explain to the others what had happened with the bridge, and Hunter nodded thoughtfully.

"I _thought_ the arm was movin' kinda slow. They must've had a security system breach."

_No duh!_ I thought darkly.

"Let's just get going." Shane sighed in irritation.

"I wanna ride in the yellow one!" Marah cried excitedly before running to the jeep and hopping in the back.

"I'll take that one, too." Tori said, eyeing Hunter warily.

Seeing the wisdom, though I really wanted to stay with Shane, I nodded. "Ok, me too."

Tori got into the driver seat and I hopped into the passenger. Starting out, I waved and stuck my tongue out at the guys as we passed them, relishing the look of longing on Hunter's face.

"Hey, hey, hey! Ladies?" Hunter cried as we drove off.

"Let's go, Hunter." Dustin said tiredly as he headed to the other vehicle.

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Ahhh, I'm sooo tired! LOL. Need sleep. Sleep good.

Hope you like it.

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"They're targeting both Balamb and Trabia Gardens!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	21. Saving Garden Part 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

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(A Little Ways from the Prison, Shane's POV)

After listening to Hunter complain about being stuck in a vehicle with two guys, for about 20 minutes, we finally reached a temporary resting point and stopped the vehicle next to the jeep, getting out and standing with the girls as we tried to sort out everything we'd learned and how we were going to deal with it.

But to be brutally honest, I was having a hard time focusing. All I could think about, besides Kapri's habit of saying the strangest things at the oddest times, was that Balamb Garden was going to be targeted by missiles.

Watching as Marah climbed atop a broken, and fairly rusted car, I sighed as she looked out over the desert behind us.

"What?" I asked, looking to Tori who had approached me rather quickly.

"The sorceress is about to launch missiles at Garden!" she cried incredulously, pacing and biting her lip a bit with a look of worry etched into her face.

Marah nodded from where she stood above the car. "That's what Kapri heard from Hunter!"

"The only thing we can do right now, is to go back to Garden as soon as possible and warn the students." I said sternly barely holding back my own panic. "Alright, let's get into the cars and go." I said, nodding.

"But..."

I turned to find Marah biting her lip. "They're targeting both Balamb and Trabia Gardens! We have to interfere with the launch! We have to stop the missiles!" she cried desperately.

I frowned and looked away. _That's all well and good, but what if something goes wrong? If we all go, we'll be captured and then who'll warn Balamb?_

"I just transfered from Trabia Garden! I can't just sit around knowing Trabia Garden is in danger! Shane, please! Decide who's gonna go to the Missile Base before it's too late!" she continued with tears in her eyes and her face pale.

_That's easier said than done... What if something happens to the people I chose?_ I thought, folding my arms over my chest. I knew she was right, and it was my job as the leader, but I couldn't help but wonder what if they got hurt? What if they were captured?

"Let's take a vote!" Kapri called with a small smile. "Shane will decide on who goes to the base. He'll return to Balamb Garden because he's the leader. Anyone against this plan, please raise your right hand!" She looked and once she saw that no one was objecting, nodded with a smile. "I don't mind which team you put me on." she added.

Again I frowned. _But you're an outsider...?_ Still, though she was an outsider, she was as vital a part of this team as any other member. I realized, even with the amount of time I'd known her, I'd come to rely on her. This made me frown. I didn't like to rely on anyone...

"You're the leader, Shane. What are the teams?" Tori asked a little impatiently.

_Leader?_ I remembered that Headmaster Kanoi made me the leader, but only of the Timber mission. Tori here was the ex-instructor! She should be the leader! _I never asked to be the leader._

There was a faint sound of whistling and we all turned to find a salvo of missiles firing into the sky. The flew up into the clouds and grew farther and farther away.

Were... Were we too late?

I felt my heart clench painfully as I thought of all the innocent people, and all the people I knew, who could possibly be dead right now...or die very soon.

Turning back, I watched as Hunter closed his eyes tightly and sighed deeply. "I...heard they were hitting Trabia first, and then Balamb." he said softly.

Even if it wasn't Balamb, it was just as bad. An innocent Garden that had nothing to do with the attack on the sorceress. So many innocent people...

Giving a loud cry of pain, Marah collapsed to her knees and Dustin quickly hopped onto the roof of the car, grabbing her close and holding her tightly as tears streamed down her face.

Though I'd never been to Trabia, I too felt pain and guilt, for this happening. And an almost unbearable anger. _Blake was so indifferent about all this..._ Didn't he think of all the innocent lives?!

And the others were no better. Kapri looked horrified and was shaky, and pale. Tori's eyes were wide and her face ashen as she slowly looked away with a grimace. Hunter actually looked horribly sympathetic and hurt and gazed at the ground sadly. And Dustin, the pain was there, but it was hidden under a veil of rage at what had transpired.

Walking over to Marah, I watched as she cried for the people she knew. "Trabia... I'm sorry... I couldn't stop it... Please, let everyone be alright. Please..." Standing up shakily, she wiped away her tears and looked at Dustin and me hopefully. "That was a miss...right? Shane, you have to report to Balamb! Who are you taking with you?!"

"C'mon Shane!" Dustin cried in a panicky voice.

Tori sighed and shook her head. "You have to decide, Shane!"

_I've had it up to here with this leader thing!_ I thought angrily, glaring at the ground. How could they depend on me so much? If they wanted the group made up so badly, then why didn't they do it?! Looking at their scared and hopeful faces, I sighed. _Alright, alright... I'll choose..._

"I'm on the missile base infiltration team! I have to be!" Marah cried angrily. "They fired missiles at MY garden!"

So, out of Tori, Hunter, Kapri and Dustin... "Kapri and Dustin." _Why do I always chose Kapri on my team??_ Maybe because I promised her I'd look after her, and wanted to keep her near so I could. With a determined nod, I looked to Marah. "This mission is unlike any other. It's not an order or request from any Garden... Marah, do you have some sort of plan?"

She nodded unsurely a moment as she looked around. Her eyes landed on the grey military jeep and her look hardened a little. "I think that if we take this Military vehicle, we should be able to make it into the base." Then she frowned. "But... That's about it. I'll have to think about the rest once we're inside. Do you think that's be ok?" she asked me nervously.

_It's your mission. You're the leader._ I thought with a raised eyebrow, staying quiet and watching her.

Her eyes widened a moment and she nodded shakily. "I'm sorry...I mean, thanks." It was obvious she'd never been the leader of a mission, but there was no time like the present to learn. This was a personal mission for her, so I chose her to lead it, knowing that despite her anger, she was the best choice. "There isn't much time. You'd better hurry to Balamb Garden!" she stated with a nod and a look of determination.

Nodding slowly, I sighed and stood at attention, saluting her a moment, and watching as she repeated the action shakily. "See you at Garden." _I hope._

Splitting up, Marah took Hunter and Tori in the grey military vehicle, and headed off towards the base, and the rest of us took the yellow jeep, heading for the nearby Train Depot.

It didn't take us long to get here, and we abandoned the vehicle, sneaking along side the stationary train until we made it to the engine. I gestured to Dustin and Kapri to remain silent while I snuck up to the door and watched as a Galbadian soldier checked the console before jumping out of the engine room and heading off. That's when I turned back and gestured for the others to come with me, jumping up into the room and starting the train.

As it began to move away, I distantly heard the sound of an alarmed cry, but chose to ignore it as the train gathered speed.

"HEY!! STOP!!"

"Shane, the guard's coming after us!" Kapri called, and I turned to find that one guard was chasing down the train as fast as he could.

It did no good. The train kept gathering speed and though he'd reached the engine room door, he was quickly losing ground.

"S-Stop the train!" the guy almost begged as he stumbled but managed to keep his footing. "AHHHHH! C'MON!!!"

Kapri looked a little guilty and shook her head. "Sorry!"

The guard stumbled again but this time couldn't keep his balance and fell to the ground, rolling a couple of times before he came to a stop, slamming his fist into the ground as the train sped off.

"Sorry, this is an emergency!" Kapri called, wincing as the guard got shakily up.

Turning my gaze on her, I sighed. If she apologized to everyone we came across, for every little thing, this could be a long trip.

(Missile Base, Marah's POV)

Standing outside our vehcle, just outside the viscinity of the Missile Base, I turned to look at hunter and Tori. I guess I was a little disappointed that Dustin went with Shane, but this was a serious mission and now wasn't the time to think about that.

Our mission was fairly simple, but also, probably the most difficult one. We had to secretly infiltrate the Galbadian Missile Base long enough to find out how to disable the missiles, and do so. Then we had to get out unscathed.

I was scared.

My first mission. My first solo mission without Shane as the leader. No, this time, _I_ was the leader. Could I do it? I didn't know. Did I have to do it? For the safety of Balamb Garden and countless innocent lives? ...Yeah. I did.

So I put on a brave face, determined to do my very best on this mission. "C'mon! To the missile Base!" I called, forgetting about the vehicle and strolling on foot up to the gate where an older guard was posted.

I tried to walk right past him, but he stopped me immediately, sneering down at me with his gun pointed at my chest. Giving me a suggestive grin, he shook his head. "This is a maximum security area! No _kids_ allowed!" he stated condescendingly.

_Eww. _Frowning, I bit my lip to keep from saying something that could really get me into a lot of trouble. If he wanted to be a jerk, I could play that game too, but now wasn't the time. So instead, I plastered the most flirtatious grin to my face that I could conjure and placed a hand on my hip, leaning a little to the side. _Gross, gross gross! _"I just wanna take a peak." I sid as innocently as I could, biting back my rage at him for being a part of this place. Batting my eyelashes, I tilted my head a little and played with my hair. "Pretty pleeeaase?"_ I think I'm gonna be sick!_

His suggestive grin turned to a genuine sneer and he laughed. "No! This isn't some club you can sweet talk yourself into." he said seriously. Then he shrugged and looked at me with disgust. "Besides..." He stared pointedly at my chest. "You're just a kid. I prefer someone more mature."

Scowling at him, I shook my head and flipped him off, sticking out my tongue and glaring at him. _How dare he!?_ "Up yours!!" I yelled, stalking off, back to the car where I saw Tori and Hunter standing there with barely concealed amusement. "Gee, thanks for the help guys!" I said sarcastically.

Without another word to them, I sighed and got into the vehicle. "Well, now what?"

"What about these?" Hunter asked, holding up a few extra uniforms that were in the back.

Groaning, I looked at them and made a face before reluctantly nodding. _It's the only idea we have._ Tori and I kicked Hunter out of the car as we changed, thankful for the automatic locks and heavily tinted windows, before allowing him back in and leaving ourselves so he could get changed. Ok, ok. So basically, we just pulled them on over our clothes, but hello! Skirt? _Short_ skirt?!

Once we were done, we headed back to the base in the vehicle, rolling down the windows as we drove up to the guard. Resisting the urge to kick him where it would hurt the most, I nodded casually and he nodded back before hitting a button and the security bar rose.

"Go on through." he said indifferently.

_Really? Phew!_ With another nod, I drove us inside, parking by another set of vehicles and stepping outside to meet up with Tori and Hunter.

"Following the launch on Trabia Garden, prepare for the launch on Balamb Garden. All personel take your positions." someone yelled over the speakers.

Frowning, I scratched my uniform and wrinkled my nose at the smell of sweat. _Ewww... This uniform is so smelly and itchy!_ I thought as I scratched my side.

"When is the launch time?" Tori asked, clearly struggling to keep her panic under control.

I couldn't blame her. I was in the same boat. But as much as I wanted to scream and yell and destroy everything, I couldn't give into it. "Who cares?! We have to stop the missiles! That's all there is to it, right?! If there's a door, we go in! If there's anything we can break, we break! And in the end, we blow the place to smitherenes!!I" I cried, jumping a little in excitement at the prospect of revenge.

Hunter lifted his mask and grinned with a nod. "Hey, Marah, I like your style!" he stated with a laugh as he pulled the mask back down into place. "Let's do it up!"

"Let's get a move on!" I cried, turning to the only building we could get into. Heading inside, we walked up to a set of double doors and I frowned when they didn't open. Still, I pushed on the door, tried lifting it, grabbed the handle and tried pulling...nothing. "It's _locked_!" I cried in despair. Next, I turned to the card slot to the door and read the inscription out loud. "Insert ID Card?! But... We don't have one!!!" I wailed.

"Marah, calm down!" Tori scolded slightly with a sigh.

I ignored her as I sulked. Don't tell me we'd failed our mission before we already began!

"Hey, Marah?"

I turned and slumped against the door as I looked at Hunter. He shrugged and scratched the back of his head before holding up a small card.

"So, like...I found this in the car. Give it a try." he said indifferently, handing me the card.

_What else do we have to lose?_ Turning to the slot, I shrugged and swiped the card.

"Verifying...Access Granted." the automated voice spoke as the red light above the door turned to green and the audible click of a lock sounded, letting us know it worked.

"Whoo-hoo!" Jumping up in excitement, I turned to Hunter and hugged him briefly before turning back and taking a deep breath. _This is it..._ Forcing myself to calm down, I walked through and immediately froze upon seeing the guard stationed outside a nearby door. _Yikes! There's someone there! What to do...? What to do...?_

Thinking for a moment, I decided that running would be suspicious, and turning and running away would be even worse. I glanced at the others and nodded slowly. _Our best bet is to walk by calmly and hope he doesn't notice anything wrong._

Walking along the catwalk and to the only other set of stairs, I almost sighed out of relief when the guard called to us, and instead, I felt my breath catch in my throat.

"Hey! You, stop right there!" he called gruffly.

I felt my heart begin to pound but took a deep breath and slowly turned, thankful for the helmet that covered my face. _Yikes! Do we look _that_ suspicious?!_

Nodding to us, the guard kept up his stance at the door. "Hah! Walking in single file... Your parents must have raised you well. That's very good manners!" he chuckled. I could swear I heard a grin in his voice. "Always be thankful to your parents for bringing you up!"

I nodded silently, rolling my eyes behind the helmet. That's _what he called to us for?!?_ "Yes, sir!" I responded finally, saluting him firmly. _Wow. That was weird... What a strange man..._

Heading down the stairs, we found ourselves in a smaller room with a door on the opposite wall, a path under the stairs we stood on, and another flight of stairs across the room, leading up. But that other flight was blocked by a soldier and I had no doubt he wouldn't let us pass.

So instead, we made our way to the door and tried to enter, only to have the guard stand in the way and shake his head slowly, telling us that this was the missile launch room and that it was off-limits at the moment.

I turned away and was about to head for the path under the first flight of stairs when I noticed a computer console on the wall, and checked it. It displayed weapons and armor information, information on the missiles and their targets, and thought this probably would have been a good place to sabotage the guidance in the missiles, it required a Keycard to get into it, and that, we didn't have.

Taking the path under the stairs, we came out in a large room with grating along the floors. It was fairly empty but for a few random boxes, and two soldiers who stood by the railing across the room, so we headed over, seeing if they either had information, or would give us a job that allowed us to enter one of the guarded rooms.

Making my way to the closest guard, I tapped him on the shoulder, and he turned to look at me.

"Huh? I'm busy now. Whaddaya want?" he said gruffly.

The other guard slowly turned to face him, leaning back against the railing. "Oh yeah...aren't we suppos'ta inspect the circuit room soon?"

The first guard checked his watch. "Oh, is it time, already? We're doing the real thing today, so there's no way we have time for it."

With a nod, the second guard turned to us. "Sorry to trouble you, but could you deliver a message for us? Tell the guys at the missile launcher to go ahead and that we'll catch up with 'em later."

The first guard sighed and leaned against the railing. "Thanks a lot. We really appreciate it."

_But I didn't say anything._ I thought with a pout as I nodded absently and walked out of the room. _But still...this could be the chance we were waiting for._

Heading to the missile launch room, we were allowed inside, and I walked straight over to a soldier that held a clip board, ignoring the six ominous missile launchers that were being moved into place for the attack on Balamb. I felt my heart clench a little, seeing that five were already in place, but bit my lip and tapped the man on the shoulder. "S'cuse me, sir? I have a message for you."

He nodded slightly and lowered the clipboard. "Well? What is it?" His tone was surprisingly friendly, and it startled me so that I forgot what the message was.

_Ah... What was it again?_ It was either something about the others going on ahead to the inspection, or telling him to... Oh yeah. "It's about inspecting the circuit room. The maintenance team said they were too busy, so that you should go on ahead." I informed him with a salute.

His head dropped down and I knew he was checking out the clipboard again. "Oh, ok. But I'm still not done here, you know. Hmmm... Could you tell them that I can't go just yet? Thanks, I appreciate it." Then he turned away to watch as three soldiers tried to manually move a large missile launcher.

_Heeeeey! _I was getting a little irritated, but I knew this was our only chance. Leading the others back to the other room, we once again spoke to the two guards standing by the rail, whom I noticed, hadn't moved since they gave us our message. _Hmph! Busy my ass!_ "They said they were too busy to go, too." I informed them with a salute. God, but this was irritating.

"Geez, what do we do now?" the first guard asked in irritation.

The second guard shrugged. "Guess we have no choice but to go..." He trailed off as he looked at us.

The first guard was also looking at us and I began to get nervous. "Aaahhh, alright..." the guy sighed. "Can we ask you to go?"

_Are you kidding?!_ I thought incredulously, resisting the urge to jump up and pump my fist into the air in excitement.

"What?!" the second guard cried shock. "Hey, that's not cool! What if the base commander finds out!?"

I grinned under my helmet. _Then you're in some deeeeeep doo-doo!_

"Ahh, it'll be fine." the first guy said flippiantly as he waved his hand in dismissal. "All we do is go and check that everything's working."

"Well, I hope you're right..."

He nodded. "So, that's that. We're counting on you." he said to us.

My grin grew and I nodded. "Yes, sir!" _...Whoo-hoo! Blow the place to smitherenes! Teach them to fire missiles at _my_ Garden!!_

So we made our way to the circuit room and stood single file in front of the guard. "The maintenance team asked us to take their place with the inspection." I informed him, almost giggling giddily.

He seemed hesitant for a moment before shrugging and nodding. "Oh, really? Then I guess my shift is over. I'm gonna call in my relief. Go ahead with the inspection." he responded with a salute before taking off.

We stepped inside the room and I paused at the doorway, taking it in. It was a fairly small room, with a glowing, rotating energy core in a separate room that we could see through some very thick bullet-proof glass on the right wall... The Reactor. Nothing was against the left wall and against the wall ahead of us was a _big_ computer. Since it was the only thing readily accessable in the room, that's where we went.

Tori took one side of the largest panel, Hunter took the other and I took the middle. I was looking at a blinking console with what looked like energy readouts on a small screen. _This must be the control panel, but I'm not sure what to do..._

I could mess with it and see what happens, but what if I accidentally set off the missiles? Or we could shoot the panel and destroy it, but that would definitely alert the guards. Frowning, I sighed and looked at the panel before shaking my head, raising my fist and banging on it.

When I was done, I pulled back and waited for something to happen while nursing my sore fist, but when nothing did, I groaned and kicked the panel hard before hitting a lot of random switches. _Do something, damn you!_ I thought furiously.

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Ok, there was NO good place to break this into chapters, but if I left it as one, it would be twice as long as this.

Sorry about the wait between updates, but I like to update multiple chapters. Plus, I've been so busy and exhausted lately, that I've only had enough energy to write maybe a fifth of a chapter a day.

Hope you like it.

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"Wouldn't it be a mega bummer is _we_ launched the missiles by mistake?"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi,


	22. Saving Garden Part 2

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** :

Junctioning - Impossible to explain, because I have no idea how, but I'll try. It was actually introduced a LOT earlier in the game, but I hoped to avoid it. So don't ask me why I chose to include it in the next chapter.

Basically, it has to do with somewhat infusing a weapon with magic. Say...Blizzard. If a weapon is junctioned with blizzard, it will give an ice element to the attack, doing more damage to monsters weak against ice. And if you use Blizzara or Blizaga, then the damage is increased for each spell. Same goes for other elements, including Cure-type spells.

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Suddenly, there was a strange whirring and the reactor began to glow less and less as it slowly shut down. once it was done, the lights shut off and I jumped in surprise and perhaps a little fear. "Heeeeeeey! The lights went out!" _Ok, when I said 'do something', I didn't mean shut us in the dark!_ I thought with a pout as I looked around.

"Electrical System malfunction. Maintenance Team, investigate immediately. Repeat... Electrical System malfunction. Maintenance Team, investigate immediately." the automated voice replied calmly as the backup lights began to flicker on, still leaving the place fairly dark.

Tori crossed her arms and sighed before turning to me. "It would look really bad if they found us in here... We should leave this room now."

I nodded and grinned under my helmet. _That was fun!_ "Alright! Next!"

Walking to the door casually, we opened it and stepped out into the hall, only to be called by a voice and again I jumped.

"Hey you! What's going on here?!"

I turned to find the two maintenance guards walking up to us, obviously angry, and sighed. _Oh man. What do I say??_ "Uhh..." Thinking quickly, I closed my eyes tightly and said the first thing that came to mind. "We just got here too, and we have absolutely no idea what's going on!"

"Bite your tongue! We just saw you coming out of that room!" one of the guards replied, crossing his arms over his chest.

_Damn! Uhhh..._ "It's just your imagination!" I insisted in a light tone. "Just leave everything to us! Don't worry about a thing! We can take care of this!"

"Well...we do have other work to do..." the first guard thought deeply.

I rolled my eyes behind my helmet. _Yeah, like more standing idolly at the railing and chatting with your buddy._

"Let's just let them handle it." he finished, looking at the other guard.

The second guard took a moment before he slowly nodded. "...Ahh, alright. Don't do anything stupid!" he warned, shaking a finger at us before he turned and walked off with the other guard.

As soon as they left, I let out a big sigh of relief and let my shoulders sag a bit. "That was toooooo close!" I whined.

"Marah, what's gotten into you?!" Tori demanded with a hand on her hip.

I shrugged and bit back the tears, thinking of the children at my Garden who might've been killed by the very missiles _this_ base launched. Frowning deeply, I sighed loudly and shook my head. "Whatever! Let's just hurry!" I insisted walking quickly to the stairs.

We made our way down the stairs and began walking towards the missile launch room when we noticed the maintenace team standing outside the doors. I was about to turn and tell the others to run, when the door opened and a man came out, waving to them.

"Hey, could you lend us a hand? The power's out and we need some help."

The one guard exchanged a look with the other before shrugging. "...Uh, I guess so." With an audible sigh, he nudged his partner and started off towards the door. "Come on."

They entered and I breathed a sigh of relief. Then I noticed that the other guard was aobut to enter but stopped at seeing us.

"Hey! You! Haven't seen you around here before..."

_Oh god! What to do... What to do..._ Blinking a moment, I shrugged and acted cool.

He sighed and looked back towards the door before shaking his head. "Well, we need some help in here. I guess it really doesn't matter who... Do you think you could lend us a hand?" he asked politely.

With a nod, I stepped up to him and bit back a sigh.

"This way. Follow me." he instructed, turning on his heel and opening his door. "Power failuer at a crucial time like this?" he muttered to himself in irritation. "What the heck are those maintenance guys doing?!"

I laughed silently, rolling my eyes behind my back as I dutifully followed him, aware of Hunter and Tori following behind me quietly.

He stopped in the center of the room and gestured to a sixth missile launcher that was near it's destination, but was holding fast to that spot as two men tried to push it by the others.

Walking over, we stood beside it and turned, waiting for instructions.

"Yeah, that's the one. One stand in the middle of the two men, and the other two on either side."

Shrugging to the others, I turned and walked between the two pushing men and bent down, taking a good position and waiting for the command. Tori stood on one side, mimicking my position, and Hunter did the same on the other.

Counting to three, the five of us began to push the missile launcher. Part of me wanted to run away screaming, refusing to help set up the tools of our Garden's imminent demise, but I bit it back and pushed harder, determined to keep up the ruse. It took a little while, and by the time we were done, I felt like my arms were made of lead, but we managed to get it done and sighed in relief when it was finally over.

"Good work." the soldier nodded. "Now all we need to do is confirm the coorinates on the control panel just outside the room. "Turning to us, he nodded again. "You guys go ahead and take care of it.

I grinned broadly at the order and almost ran out of the room in my excitement. _The control panel?? Now we're talkin'!!_

"Ok, so what should we do?" Tori asked curiously as we stood by the control panel.

Hunter shrugged and pointed to it. "So, like...let's just bust it up."

_Sounds like something Dustin would suggest._ I thought wryly, smiling a little behind my helmet. Looking at the panel, I disagreed with his plan. _Yeah, bust it up real good! But..._ "Wouldn't it be a mega bummer is _we_ launched the missiles by mistake?" I suggested with a raised eyebrow. "So, I think we should hold back and mess around with it, instead."

"That sounds good." Tori agreed with a slightly impressed tone at my restraint.

Hunter sighed and shrugged. "Whatever works for you." he put in with a disappointed tone.

Logging into the system, we noted it had been unlocked and we could get into everything. First thing we did was go into the programming area and mess with the error ration, hoping it would mess up the sensors on the missiles. Then, I went to the coordinates section and tried changing them, but they were set firmly into place. I managed to move the indicator a little to the left, and that was it. Hopefully, it would be enough to mean a major miss.

Once we were done, we logged out and I turned to the stairs. That was the only place we hadn't been and the curiosity of what was behind that door was eating at me. So I walked ahead to the stairs, only to be stopped by the single guard that was standing there.

"This place is off-limits! You're not allowed up here." he said firmly.

Thinking quickly, I realized that coming from the control panel had bonus points. "But we've come to report the missile coordinate data!" I insisted.

He nodded quickly and moved aside. "Oh, very well. Go right ahead."

We walked past, but I was still clearly able to hear what he muttered to himself as we passed, and I clenched my fists as I stalked angrily up the stairs.

"...Did we have someone that puny on our base?"

_What nerve! I'm not puny!_

Biting back a snarl, I finally made it up the stairs and stopped just on the other side of the door, still out of view of the people in this control room. From what I could see of it, the walls were lined with computer consoles, and there were three guards present. One, an Elite Guard.

"All systems go, sir!" on e guard saluted.

The second guard followed his example. "Everything's all set, sir!"

The Elite Guard nodded a moment before sighing in relief. "We had some minor setbacks, but proceed as scheduled. We're running a little behind, but prepare for the final launch phaze."

_Oh no! We have to stop the missiles!_ I thought in horror.

"Roger!" The Guards chorused, and the Elite Guard hit a button before speking into a speaker system.

"Attention. This is the control room. We are now entering the final phaze of the missile launch. Take your designated positions and prepare for the launch." He hit the button again, and the speakers crackled off with a small whine.

_That's it._ Leading the others in, we stopped just in view of the guards, watching as the Elite Guard fingered his blade suspiciously when he noticed us.

"What're you doing in here?!" he demanded angrily.

Saluting him, I sighed quietly. "We've come to report the missile coordinates."

He seemed to relax a moment. "Oh..." Then he was quiet for a long moment before tensing back up and withdrawing his sword. "Don't move! I thought something was suspicious. You guys are the intruders! No use hiding it now, the salute you just did was all wrong!"

I looked at my hand a moment before looking at the others and shrugging. _Well, at least we made it this far. It's time to rumble!_ I raised my hand to a hany flash bomb we'd been carrying and watched as the guards all tensed up.

"What're you doing?!"

The only answer he got was me throwing the bomb down and in the bright light that followed, we quickly tore off the uniforms to reveal our real clothing and weapons. Then we armed ourselves and waited until they could see again.

"TA-DA!" I cried cheerily. "Hooo!" I breathed a loud sigh of relief. "Finally! That military uniform stunk and itched!"

Running forward, I lashed out with my nun chucks, hitting one of the blue uniformed guards in the head and stunning him. Tori finished him off by lashing out with her whip, wrapping it around his neck before pulling it back and causing him to spin off balance, craching into a console and being knocked out.

Hunter fired at the other guard, hitting him in the leg, and causing him to cry out in pain as he fell to the ground. Firing a second shot, he hit the guy in the chest, not killing him, but knocking him out, too.

That left us with the Elite Guard left. I hit him in the chest with my nun chucks, but unfortunately, it only slightly dented his armor. Tori followed my example, but aimed for his arm that held the sword, making him drop it and yelp in obvious pain.

Hunter fired a shot at the chest, but again, the metal armor deflected it. Frowning deeply, his blue eyes scanned the soldier before he reloaded his gun and aimed for the shoulder.

Staggering back from the hit, the soldier growled before pulling out a grenade and throwing it at us, but Tori swung her metal whip out and knocked it back at him, watching it explode at his feet.

"Shit!" he cried, falling back a foot.

Using my nun chucks, I hit him in the throat and he gave a garbled cry as he held it and fell to his knees. Hunter walked right up to him and lifted his helmet efore punching him in the face and knocking him out.

Once the guards were knocked out, I nodded to myself and looked at all the consoles in the room. "Ok, then. Let's stop the missiles, blow the base to smitherenes and get the hell outta here!"

Tori looked around in confusion before walking over to a control panel and inspecting it closely. "One of these control panels should be the launch control mechanism." She fiddles with a few buttons before sighing and shaking her head. "Not this one..." she murmured, moving to the next console.

"So, like...Let's just split up and look." Hunter suggested with a shrug, moving across the room and checking out a random console. He began to press random buttons with abandon behore slamming his fist on the top of the console and groaning in irritation before walking to another one.

Shrugging, I headed to a console a little ways from both of them and began looking. I carefully hit some buttons, not wanting to accidentally set off the missiles, and grinned when I noticed this was the console I wanted. "Heeey! I found it!" I began pressing buttons with abandon, trying to mess with the launch control, but I noticed that it seemed to have backup safeties in place. It wouldn't guarantee that the launch would be stopped, but there was a small chance, at least. "Push this, then that... There! All we have to do now, is find the self-destruct mechanism!"

"...But it doesn't seem to be in here..." Tori responded with a frown, looking around at the consoles we'd examined.

I looked around as well and checked the last few console, only to find that she was right. Then I noticed there was a small back room and more consoles. With another shrug, I walked into it and found a single large console with a big red button in the center that had writing underneath that said, 'Push in Case of Emergencies. Self-Destruct'.

Direct enough?

I also noticed that if we pushed the button, we'd be required to set a time limit. With a frown, I figured I'd better play it safe. This wasn't a SeeD field Exam, so it didn't matter if I used more time, but it _would_ enable the guards to undo the damage we'd done, so to be safe, we chose 20 minutes and set it before hitting the button.

"Self-Destruct mechanism operating. 20 Minutes until destruction. All staff evacuate the base immediately. I repeat..."

We were so focused on the self-destruct going, and that we'd basically successfully completed our mission, that we failed to notice the guard behind us, standing shakily and typing something on the console before he collapsed. We might've heard him, but alarms were blaring at this point, so we couldn't hear anything but that.

"Whoo-hoo! Let's hurry on outta here!" I cheered as we ran through another door, surprisingly, leading us directly to the main entrance. We took off outside, but had to remain hidden as we saw the hundreds of guards and elites running through the doorway as it remained open. Even vehicles were taking off, running over a few slower officers in order to get out while they could.

Soon, there was no one left and we stood out from the boxes we were hiding behind. Then, we stopped. There was the sound of something large moving and metal scraping on metal. "Huh? Heeey! What's that noise?" I asked warily.

Suddenly there was a loud scarping sound and we turned, watching in horror as the missile launch shoots shot open and a volley of missiles was shot ito the air. Shaking my head, I blinked a moment before sinking to my knees. _But...we..._

There was a large whirring sound and I slowly turned my head to see a massive mechanical machine backing up in front of the door. It had six convered control rooms, besides the main one in the head, and had many smaller missile launchers.

"There's no way I'm letting you all live!" a man's voice from inside the machine cried angrily. "It would be inexcuseable to Sorceress Miko!"

_Sorceress Miko..._ I thought in a daze as my eyes narrowed angrily. _She's the one who ordered the missile attack on Trabia and Balamb Gardens._ And this was one of her toys.

"I don't want to suffer her wrath!" he cried, almost sounding scared. "Are you men ready?" he demanded.

"Yes, sir!" one man in one of the small control rooms replied.

Another one ehoched that. "Yes, sir!"

"Alright, let's go!" he cried as a volley of missiles was launched at us.

I jumped up and to the side, managing to avoid the missiles, and I watched as Hunter and Tori did the same. With a glare to the machine, I jumped in front of it and focused my powers, channeling through my spells until I found a thundaga, and triple. So I cast a powerful Thundaga three times in a row, and watched as two of the single control rooms exploded clean away.

"Keep attacking anyways!" the captain ordered shakily.

"Let's just get outta here!" one guard cried as the machine unleashed a powerful beam cannon on us.

I felt my body spasm painfully and fell to my knees with a cry as the beam hit me. Laying there panting, I closed my eyes tightly, trying to handle the pain that coursed through me. I managed to raid my item pouch for a hi-potion and used it to regain my strength, standing back up and glaring coldly at the machine in front of us.

Tori cast two Thundaras, thanks to the Double spell, and Hunter followed suit, and I cast a single Double spell on myself.

Another control room exploded.

"Can't let them seize this MRV." the captain grunted.

"Yes, sir!" one of the soldiers cried.

I quickly cast Haste on myself and Tori, thankful for the hidden Draw Point in the base, and then cast two Thundaras on the machine. She did the same, and another of the six control rooms blew sky high, leaving only two left.

"I...I can't control it!" the soldier yelled.

"What?!" the captain demanded as the machine shook and several loud explosions ensued.

A small hatch in the side opened, and an Elite Guard, and soldier came rushing out, and I had to bite back a laugh when the Elite guard dropped on his ass and rolled to put the fire out. It wasn't every day you were confronted by a soldier with his ass on fire!

"OW! HOT! HOT! HOOOTT!!" the guy screamed, before he managed to put the fire out. "That piece of crap!"

"What now, sir? It needs repairs!"

"We'll kill 'em first!" he snarled, grabbing a gun.

I quickly cast another Haste on Hunter and a Thundara on the Elite Guard.

Tori smirked and cast Protect on Hunter and herself before lashing out with her whip to hit the soldier, knocking him out in one hit. Then she cast Protect and Shell on me, and I cast two Thundaras on the Elite guard, knocking him out as well.

Once that was done, we raced to the gate, only to see that it had closed during the battle.

I felt my jaw drop. _...Are we locked in?_ I thought in shock. I looked around quickly and ran towards the fence where the missiles had been launched from, seeing no other way out. Then I collapsed to my knees in defeat, barely noticing that Hunter and Tori did the same with resigned looks on their faces. _Shane will take care of the rest, right?_

I imagined the Garden Festival I was in charge of, and sighed deeply. _I wonder if he'll organize the Garden Festival?_ Shaking my head slowly, I smiled bitterly. _Nah, can't count on Shane for that... He agreed, but it's SO not his thing... _I sighed. _It's all over..._

"It came quite quietly." Tori mused out loud with a sad smile. "I thought the end would've been more dramatic."

Hunter sighed with a frown. "Shane... He didn't trust me. That's probably why he put me on this team."

I frowned at that. That wasn't right. _...What are you all saying??! ...Shane chose us because he believed in us..._ I stood up, glaring at the ground. _And we were about to just give up!?! _I shook my head. "No. He trusted us! I'm sure of it!" I said firmly. _We can do it. That's what he thought when he made this team. Isn't that right, Shane?_

Shaking my head again, I groaned and looked around. "We can't just give up!" Then my eyes landed on the broken machine we'd fought and I got an idea.

Explosions began to reign around the base, and I looked at my watch, blinking as I noticed the blinking 0:00 on it. Our time was up. We had to move... _now_!

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Ok, so that's the end of their part. Next we move onto the other team. Wonder how they're fairing?

Hope you like it

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"Are you with the Headmaster, or the Garden Master? Do you swear allegience with Garden Master Lothor?!"

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Ooooooh... Lothor's making an appearance?!?! Wonder how Kapri'll act about this...?

R+R please.

Thank you everyone.

Tenshi.


	23. Saving Garden Part 3

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

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(Balamb Garden with Shane, Kapri and Dustin, Shane's POV)

As we rushed to the front gate of Garden, I was seized by a violent shiver and the feeling that something was horribly wrong. Frowning, I thought about the other team and hoped they were all right.

But here, everything seemed to be all right. The only thing I noticed that was weird, was the number of students that were running through the front gate and out of Garden. But I didn't know what to make of it.

"Alright! Garden's safe!" Dustin cried happily.

I kept frowning. Was it really? _It looks like they did it._ I thought, looking into the sky. Then I stiffened. _Still, the missiles could be on the way._ "We need to report to the Headmaster." I said firmly.

Dustin and Kapri exchanged nods before we ran through the front gate.

What we saw inside was nothing short of chaos. Students running left and right, monsters unleashed and running rampant through Garden, Garden Faculty yelling at students and ordering the monsters around... _What's going on here?!_

"Find the Headmaster!" a Garden Faculty demanded of two SeeDs. They saluted and ran off and he turned to other SeeDs.

_Are they evacuating...?!_

"Seize him! Kill him if you have to!!" he yelled, watching as the other students saluted and ran off with their weapons drawn.

I felt my eyes go wide. _WHAT?!?!_

"Kill him...?" Kapri muttered in shock, her own eyes wide with horror.

We ran to the reception area and were stopped by a Garden Faculty member that stood with a T-Rexaur beside him. "You three, which side are you on?!" he demanded.

_Huh? Side...?_ "I don't understand what's going on." I responded in confusion.

"Are you with the Headmaster, or the Garden Master? Do you swear allegience with Garden Master Lothor?!"

There was a gasp beside me, and I turned to find that Kapri had gone pale as her eyes widened even more. As I watched, she closed her eyes tightly before taking a step forward and glaring at him angrily. "I'll never swear allegience to that ass!" she yelled in a pure rage.

_Does she know him?_ I thought in confusion. There was a flash of recognition, as well as a strong flash of pain and fear before she turned determined. Something told her I'd better talk to her about it later, but for now... I turned to the Garden Faculty and grabbed my gunblade. "I have no idea what the hell's going on, but no... I don't swear allegience to this Garden Master of yours!" I spat.

He frowned deeply before pulling out a shrill whistle and blowing it. We watched silently as a Grat and Caterchipillar came rushing over and he ordered them to attack us.

"Lothor is the true ruler of Balamb Garden!" he yelled before he ran off.

_Who the hell is Lothor?_ I thought angrily, swiping my blade across the midsection of the Grat while Kapri and Dustin took on the Caterchipillar. The battle didn't take long and we walked on until I found a wounded student and knelt by his side.

He gave us a weak smile. "Hey Shane."

I raised an eyebrow at this. Did everyone know who I was?

"The Garden is in total chaos. The monsters from the Training Area are everywhere. The members of the Garden Master's faction unleashed them. Watch your back man. If you're going in, take this."

He handed me a mega-potion and I accepted it gratefully before we continued on. Making our way to the Directory in the main hall, I was surprised at who I heard calling my name.

"Yo, Shane!"

I turned and found Taylor and Eric running up to us, looking spooked. That was a surprise because not only didn't I expect to find them here at Garden, but they hardly ever looked spooked about anything. "What's going on here?" I asked quietly, not wanting to draw attention to us from the Garden Faculty.

Eric shrugged. "I dunno. At first, they were sayin' somethin' 'bout roundin' up all the SeeDs, ya know? Now everyone's either sidin' with the Garden MAster, or the Headmaster, and fightin' everywhere, ya know?!"

"DISTURBING!!" Taylor yelled with a shake of her head.

I rubbed my ear for a moment before frowning. "Why are the SeeDs targeted? And where's the Headmaster? Is he safe?!" I demanded.

They exchanged looks before Eric shrugged. "We got no clue."

"We need to find him right away!" I yelled, remembering that the missiles could very well be on their way. "It's important! Galbadian missiles may be heading this way!"

Eric's face paled. "What?! We gotta get outta here!!" he shouted, running around in circles and panicking.

Taylor shook her head and crossed her arms before kicking him in the shin as he passed her, causing him to trip and limp a bit as he held his leg.

"OUCH! Geez, alright!" he yelled rubbing his leg. "We'll warn everyone about the missiles! Man, this is not the time to be fightin', ya know?"

I nodded, thankful for their help. "I'll go find the Headmaster."

"CAUTION!" Taylor yelled with a slightly worried look.

Eric nodded. "Yeah, the fightin' is intense, everywhere! And watch out for those Garden Master goons, ya know!"

"Yo, guys..." Dustin rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

Kapri looked at them curiously, with a hint of anger still lying in her eyes. "The Headmaster?"

"Hey, jus' like Taylor said, ya kno?! We're with Blake. Always have, always will." Eric said proudly before they took off down the hall.

_Blake... He's sided with the sorceress. You two alright with that?_ I thought curiously.

We made our way to the different areas, beginning with the infirmary. No matter where we went, we ran into Garden Faculty and monsters. Each back, we took out, whether it was a T-Rexaur, Granaldo, Raldos, Caterchipillars, Bite Bugs, Bombs, Grats and more...

And when did Bite Bugs start farting on people?!?

Gagging a little, I watched as Dustin took the bug out as I shook my head and held a hand over my nose, quickly using an antidote and glaring at Kapri who was laughing at me.

Most of the monsters were fairly easy to kill, with the exception of T-Rexaurs who could hurt us pretty badly with one hit, and Bombs which exploded after they were hit three times, if they weren't killed in that time. So, to help us with them, we junctioned magic to our weapons.

Basically, we infused our weapons with powerful spells and for some reason, they stayed in our weapons until we changed the spell manually.

Blizzara definitely came in handy.

The only information we'd managed to gather from anyone, was that Cam would probably know where Kanoi was, but it was impossible to find him. Dr. Shayla, when we told her about the missiles, took a seat behind her desk and firmly insisted that she was going to stay. She said something about wounded people needing her help, but what she seemed to fail to realize was that if the Garden was blown up by missiles, no one would be alive to need treatment or to treat the wounded.

At the Quad, we fought of a Glacial Eye and a Bomb before three SeeDs made themselves known and demanded to know which side we were on.

"We're with Headmaster." I replied warily, keeping my blade out.

The female of the trio sighed in relief and replaced her sword. "That's what we thought. Who's this 'Garden Master' anyway?" she asked herself with a frown.

I noticed Kapri ent pale and glared at the floor. She shook a little and her hands were clenched in fists. "He's a rotten bastard!" she hissed angrily, surprising me. I hadn't expect her to speak, but when she did, I knew that somehow, she knew this guy. "He loves watching people suffer."

"The Headmaster said something about having the SeeDs evacuate, because 'The true battle for SeeD' is yet to come." one of the men put in, looking a little freaked by Kapri's words.

The second male nodded and held out an x-potion. "Here, take this."

I nodded in thanks and took it, slipping it into my item pouch.

Next we made our way to the Cafeteria. We battled a T-Rexaur, which was fairly simple when we put him to sleep. We repeatedly casted Blizzara and Summoned Shiva. Then we went in to find three more SeeDs standing here.

They told us they hadn't seen the Headmaster, and that we'd likely find SeeDs at every area, because essentially, they were confusing the enemy and drawing their attention to many places at once.

Apparently, it was Cam's idea. When the attacks had begun, he took charge immediately and ordered them to do this before he disappeared. Now, no one knew where he was.

We fought more monsters in the Dormitory hallway and the Garden Park way, finding more SeeDs. In fact, they even had a pretty convincing hologram of Kanoi in the Garden Park, but they revealed to us that it was fake. Sadly, no one knew where to find Headmaster Kanoi or his son, Cam.

Heading to the Training Center, I heard a frightened voice call for help, and noticed a female SeeD running into the grounds with two students that were still children! A Garden Faculty member walked towards them with a SeeD that had chosen Lothor's side, and grinned as he looked at a little boy, chuckling a bit before me mentioned something about it being easy pickings.

Then the kid kicked him in the knee, and the guy fell over, howling and clutching at his pained leg.

Shaking my head, I jumped and flipped over the Garden Faculty and traitorous SeeD before landing in front of them and swinging my blade threateningly. Kapri and Dustin rushed the SeeD, knocking him out, and stood by my side as the Garden Faculty whistled, calling a T-Rexaur.

"All those opposed to Lothor, must die!" the Faculty member yelled before high-tailing it out of the room.

We took out the T-Rexaur and turned to see the female SeeD salute us with a relieved smile on her face.

"Thanks, Shane. Here, take this." she said, holding out a Remedy.

Raising an eyebrow, I nodded and accepted it before looking to the others, and leaving. We went to the library and fought another Grat and Caterchipillar before heading back to the main hall.

Then I saw a familiar figure make their way onto the elevator and head up to the Second Floor.

"Cam?!" I shouted, but they didn't stop.

Running to the elevator, we took it to 2F and made our way along the hallway, past the class and down to the end of the hall, where an emergency exit sat, and a balcony sat, with the door closed tight.

And right in front of the door, stood a wary Cam who took a defensive stand upon seeing us. "Who's side are you on?!" he demanded.

"Neither." I answered honestly. This wasn't the time to be bickering about who was right and wrong, and who was the 'real ruler' of Balamb Garden. "We have urgent news! We need to see the Headmaster, now! Where is he?!"

He narrowed his eyes at us. "_I'm_ listening..." he said cautiously.

"Galbadian missiles may be heading this way." I said calmly, beginning to get irritated with having to repeat myself so many times.

"Here?!" he cried incredulously.

"Just trust us, please!" Kapri called worriedly.

Standing down, Cam sighed and nodded. "Alright. I'll tell my dad right away."

"Where is he?" I asked calmly, beginning to feel a little better.

Shrugging, Cam grinned. "In his office. We made it look like he was hiding, but he's been there all along. Follow me."

We went back to the elevator and took it up, waiting outside the main office doors as Cam went in to talk to the Headmaster. After a few moments, he came out and looked at us grimly. "I have to go inform the students to evacuate. He's ready to see you, now." he said with a salute and nod before taking the elevator back down.

Heading into the office, we stood in a line, and I briefly noted at Kapri was once again minicking us, standing at attention.

"Sir." I said quietly, alerting him to our presence.

He slowly turned around and nodded with a serious look. "Cam told me about the missiles. The intercom is down, so we can't announce the order to evacuate."

I nodded. "Cam, Taylor and Eric are taking care of that."

"I want you to assist them and then evacuate." he said firmly.

I frowned. _What're you planning?_ "But I have a lot to report."

"You can tell me later." he said with a crooked grin.

_But we might all be dead later..._

"You have a problem with that?" he challenged lightly with a raised eyebrow.

_Yeah. What are you going to do?_ "Sir, what're you planning?" I felt a little worried, because I was questioning a direct order, but something told me there was more to the story, and there was a way I could help.

He shrugged and turned so his back was to his seat. "I'm going to stay here and see this to the end. After all, this place is like my home."

"You're planning on dyin' here?!?" Dustin cried in shock.

Kapri's jaw dropped and her eyes filled with tears. "No...! You can't! Just come with us, please! You can always rebuild this place!" she pleaded.

"You can rest assured, I'm just going to try something. There still may be a way to save Garden." he said confidently, moving away from the desk, only to stumble over a pencil on the floor and rub his hip.

_Against missiles...? How?_ I thought in disbelief.

Chuckling a little, Headmaster Kanoi straightened up and popped his back. "I'm getting too old for this..."

"Sir, I'd like to handle whatever it is you're planning." I spoke up, biting back a wince for directly going against his orders.

He looked at me in surprise and blinked a moment before his gaze almost turned knowing. "And why is that?"

I frowned as I thought about it.

_...I don't know... Because you might screw up. Because I want to do more than announce the evacuation... Because this place is important to me, too. Because this is my home... I don't know. I have too many reasons... I don't know why... and who cares?_

"My feelings have nothing to do with it, sir!" I stated firmly.

He chuckled and shook his head with a small sigh. "Tori was right. You do have a hard time expressing your feelings."

My frown deepened and I felt my face heat up when Kapri began to giggle a little. ­_Why bother? And what is this? Why am I being judged?!_ "Sir! Please tell us your plan!"

"This building used to be a shelter, before it was remodeled into the Garden we all know." he threw something at me and I caught it, looking at it and realizing it was a rather old looking key. "Use that key to open the lock on the elevator. Opening the lock gives you access to MD level. Rumor has it that further below MD level, there is some kind of control system. It was used when this place was still a shelter, so I've never seen it and I have no idea what it does. All I know is that it was used for the shelter, so it might prove effective against the missiles. That's what I'm betting on."

_Sounds pretty farfetched... But I guess it's better than nothing._ I thought doubtfully. "I understand. We'll find this control system and check it out."

"Good luck to all of you." he said sincerely, going to his desk and sitting at the chair.

We saluted him before going to the said elevator and using the key to unlock the lower level. Heading down, I scowled to myself when the ride seemed to take forever, and then I thought of something. "Kapri..." I waited until her eyes were locked on mine. "How do you know this 'Garden Master Lothor'?"

her face paled and she leaned heavily on the wall. Looking away nervously, she opened nd closed her mouth a few times before manaing to say anything. "I...I don't know what you're talking about." she offered weakly.

_Yeah you do._ "You know him." I said again. "Don't bother to deny it." She gave it away earlier, with her outburst, and she knew it.

Sighing heavily, she shrugged. "Ok, I know _A_ Lothor, but you wouldn't believe how." she said quietly.

"Try us." Dustin put in with a wary eye on her.

"I'm...not from this world." she said after a long moment. "As crazy as it sounds, even Billy and Bridge know it's true."

I raised an eyebrow at this. She was right, it _did_ sounds crazy. But it would explain a lot. Those random mumblings about 'Power Rangers', 'Zords' and how she knew someone no one in Garden, but possible Kanoi, knew.

"In my world, I fought for the wrong side. I realized it, but out of fear, didn't do anything to change it. Lothor was who I fought for. He was hell bent on taking over the world. I don't think it's the same guy, but... I don't know." She kept looking at the ground. "I don't know how or why I ended up here, but since it seemed like a second chance, I took it willingly, making sure I fought on the right side, and not really fearing him anymore, because i thought i'd never see him again."

"You knew us." I murmured absently, thinking back to the look of recognition on her face on the train when I introduced her to Marah and Dustin.

She looked at me in confusion a moment before blushing and nodding slowly. "Yeah, I did. In my owlrd, you're all fighters for the side of good. Power Rangers." She went on to explain how her, and her sister Marah, fought against us, working for Lothor. And how Marah went to join the 'right' side, as she called it. How Tori, Blake, Hunter, Dustin, Cam and I were Power rangers, and Kanoi was our teacher, in a sense.

It was a lot to take in, but strangely, I found myself believing her. At first, I was a little angry, that she didn't tell us this before, and for her choices back on 'earth', but hearing her story, I began to understand her fear and anger to this Lothor that she knew.

Suddenly, the elevator shook violently and went dark, stopping it's descent. After a moment, emergency lights came on, and I pressed some buttons on the panel, slamming my fist into the wall when nothing happened. _Damnit!_

"What?! I don't know what to do!" Dustin cried with a frown.

Kapri sighed and closed her eyes before leaning away from the wall. "Come on. There has to be a way out." she said firmly.

I nodded and began looking around when my foot felt something under it and i looked down, seeing a panel below us. Bending down, I tugged on the handle and managed to open it, ignoring the cheers from the others as I climbed down.

Climbing down the ladder, I soon noticed an opening in the wall and climbed through it, running a ways down the tunnel. I turned back to find Dustin only a few feet away from me, and Kapri was just clibming into the tunnel. She'd only taken a few steps away from the opening, when there was the sound of metal scraping on metal, and the elevator dropped behind her, making a resounding crash and causing us all to jump before hitting the ground and covering our heads.

I barely heard a terrified scream, realizing it was Kapri, and I looked up to see the metal debris of the elevator, only two feet from her prone body. Wincing a little in sympathy, I got back up and made sure everyone was ok before we continued on, climbing another ladder to reveal a large round tunnel.

"An oil stratum... Watch for enemies weak against fire." I warned the others, junctioning Fira to my gunblade.

They did the same to their weapons and we continued on, taking out monsters easily. Mostly, it was Creeps, shadow-type monsters weak against Fire and Cure magic, and Slimes, gel-type monsters extremely weak against Fire.

Finding a valve room, I stood between Dustin and Kapri and together, we turned the valve, opening the ladder to the level below. Wincing a little and rubbing my arm as we continued on, I mentally vowed to ask the Headmaster to send someone down to oil these valves.

Soon, we ended up in a large room with a single pillar in the center and a ladder leading up. Other than that, it was a circular platform, and a ladder leading down that we couldn't get to.

I frowned. "...A dead end?"

"Man, another ladder..." Dustin eyed it with a grimace as he rubbed his shoulder.

Kapri nodded and eyed it warily. "I wonder where it goes..."

"Oh, over there!" Dustin had looked to where it led and noticed a small room across the massive expanse of darkness.

"Well, Shane?" Kapri asked nervously, wringing her hand as she looked almost fearfully at the rusted ladder.

Looking at the ladder, I raised an eyebrow as I briefly thought about sending one of the others. _Hmmm...Dustin or Kapri..._ I scrapped that idea. Dustin was all muscle and would probably bounce up the ladder, making it collapse, and though Kapri stood a good chance of making it to the top, part of me knew she'd find any excuse to refuse. Not to mention, I didn't want to chance her getting hurt if anything happened.

Frowning to myself, I sighed and shook my head. _Why am I even thinking like that?_ "I'll go take a look. You two wait here." I instructed heading for the ladder. Climbing up the ladder, I must've made it a good halfway up when it began to shake and pulled away from the wall. Turning to look over my shoulder, I noticed the room coming closer and closer, and jumped away from the ladder, shielding my face as I smashed through the window and rolled across the ground.

When I opened my eyes again, I swallowed heavily as I noticed one of the ladder legs only a few inches from my face. _Damn, that was close!_ I thought as I shakily stood up. Wandering to the broken window, I waved down to let the others know I was alright before looking to the door on the other side of the room and noticing that there was twisted metal debris blocking the way.

Sighing, I turned and hit a button, opening the gate to the stairway down before looking at the ladder. _It looks like I'll have to climb down the ladder, again._ At least this time, it looked a lot safer. It was leaning on the wall, crossing the massive darkness to the platform the others stood on.

Climbing to the top of it, I carefully balanced myself and walked back to the others, hopping off beside Dustin, who was looking at me with wide eyes.

"Shane! That was close!" He breathed a sigh of relief. "You ok, man?"

"...Yeah." I said quietly, looking out over the dark hole that could've easily been my final resting place.

"God, you scared me half to death!" Kapri almost shouted, holding a hand over her heart. "That must've been terrifying!"

"Yeah. But this is no time to be worrying. The missiles might be on their way." I reminded them grimly.

We climbed down the new ladder to a floor below with a Curaga Draw Point, and made our way to the path leading to a final ladder, when two slimy-looking monsters jumped out of a pit of oil.

They were white, with black spots where the oil stuck to them, and had a long suctioning snout, with six tentacle-like legs.

Frowning, I drew my gunblade before shaking my head and summoning Ifrit. He flew through the air in a giant fireball before landing at my feet and shaking himself off. Raising his arms, he jumped into the air before roaring loudly and creating a ball of fire, throwing it at the monster.

As the last traces of fire faded away and Ifrit disappeared, Kapri cast double on Dustin and herself and raised her crossbow to hit the monster.

One of them reared back before unleashing an oily substance that hit me in the face and chest, knocking me down. Shaking my head, I wiped as much of that stuff off as I could, but when I opened my eyes, I noticed that I couldn't see, and I also felt drained and sick to my stomach.

_Blind and Poison._

Cursing to myself, I frowned deeper when I heard nothing come out and sighed in irritation.

_And Silence..._

Digging blindly through my item pouch, I grabbed a spare Remedy and used it, sighing in relief once I could see again, only to growl quietly when I noticed Kapri unconscious and Dustin barely conscious, poisoned, silenced and blinded.

Grabbing a phoenix down, I used it on Kapri before using a remedy on Dustin and standing up. I then cast Double on myself and Kapri.

Kapri doublecast Fira on the monsters, followed by Dustin doing the same. Then I draw Life and Curaga magics from them before doing the same.

With the constant casting of mid-level Fira spells, the monsters soon fell, burning away into nothing.

Turning to look around, I noticed a lever and walked over to it, seeing that it was connected to the blocked ladder. Pulling it, I sighed and rolled my eyes as I made my way to the ladder ahead of us. _Please tell me this is the last ladder!_ I pleaded as we climbed down.

Now, we were all standing in a small room. And I mean _small_! There was barely enough room for the three of us to stand, and in front of us was a massive, rusted machine. Looking at it, I doubted if it'd ever work, but sighed as I looked at the control panel in front of us.

"Looks like we're here..." I mused.

"Oh man..." Dustin groaned, looking at the dead-looking panel in front of me. "What the hell do we do now?!"

"Well, we can't just stand here and stare at it." Kapri said, raising an eyebrow.

Looking at the panel, I noticed a small valve and began to turn it. _How am I supposed to know what to do!? Headmaster Kanoi doesn't even know!_ I thought furiously.

"What the heck are you doin'?!" Dustin yelled.

"Shane!" Kapri called worriedly.

"I don't know!" I yelled, beginning to panic. The missiles could be here at any moment. I had to do something! "What else can I do?!"

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Ok. No other good place to make a chapter break, that I could see.

I don't remember too much of the games, so those who do know them, might notice I have the wrong spell in a Draw Point, or I'm drawing magic from a monster that doesn't have it. Sorry.

Also, I'm trying to explain things the best I can, from memory.

Hope you like it.

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""Missiles! Incoming!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi.


	24. Mobile Garden

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : Yeah, I wanted to think up a way for Kapri to admit to what she knew, and her past life on earth. I mean, she could've just kept quiet about it, like it never happened, but it seemed better to have her admit to it.

Ok, quick question about Kapri's attacks. Did I ever give a name for the dog? If so, then I totally forgot. But I called him Angelo in the next chapter because I couldn't think of a better name.

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There was a loud crackle and the ground began to shake. Looking around as we held onto the railing for support, I watched as the turbines began to rotate, picking up speed as they went. Sparks of energy ran up them, and lights began to flash on.

The platform began to rise, and we all crouched down to protect ourselves from the debris that fell from above us. It was so fast that the next thing I knew, Kanoi was laying on the ground amongst us, and the platform rose high above his office.

Looking up from the ground, I absently helped him up as I watched a glowing ring around the top of the Garden, circle the building as it moved down, giving off a bright light. Metal armor appeared, and something large shifted on the other end of the building.

Then, I noticed the missiles.

"Missiles! Incoming!" I yelled, standing almost in shock as they headed directly for us.

"NO!!!" Kapri yelled, grabbing my hand and holding onto my arm as the Garden gave a violent lurch.

Squeezing her hand back a moment, before I realized what I was doing, I ducked down as the missiles flew right towards us, only to hear a large explosion behind us and straighten up to see that the had landed where the Garden used to be.

_Used_ to be...

Now, we weren't in the same place, but were floating, yes _floating_, around on the island.

"We're moving?!" I shouted in surprise, pulling away from Kapri to stand by the controls.

Headmaster Kanoi nodded thoughtfully. "I see...so this was the secret..."

"Wow..." she breathed in awe, looking out over the view. The room we stood on was solid glass walls, so we could see everything.

Dustin nodded. "Oh man...! This is awesome!" he cried excitedly.

Not removing his eyes from the console, Headmaster Kanoi pursed his lips thoughtfully. "I wonder how things are going outside?"

"Shane, let's go check it out!" Dustin cried cheerily, racing to the elevator and taking it down.

Kapri nodded at me. "Come on, Shane, let's go." she said more calmly, taking the elevator down as well.

We headed down to the second floor and made our way to the balcony door way. Walking through, Kapri gasped with a smile and ran forward, leaning over the rail and letting her hair blow around her face in the wind.

I just watched her silently as she brushed thei hair out of her face and looked up before she turned to me and smiled.

Blinking a moment, I couldn't deny that she was beautiful.

Looking to the ground, I felt my face heat up and scowled at myself for thinking like that. But...as much as I wanted to deny it, I couldn't.

The door behind us burst open and Cam came rushing in, looking worried. "Shane! It's the headmaster! Get back to the bridge on the double!" he ordered before racing off.

Nodding to the others, we took off back down the cooridor and path, taking the elevator back up to the office, and the smaller elevator up to the bridge, where Headmaster Kanoi was running back and forth between the consoles, looking horrified.

Turning to us, his eyes were wide. "Shane! The controls aren't responding! I don't know what to do! We're going to crash into the town of Balamb if we don't do something!"

Dustin's eyes went wide as his face paled. "Mom..." he muttered.

"No way!" Kapri protested. "Can't we do something?!"

"Man...! This can't be happening!" Dustin cried.

"Shane, can you think of anything?!" the headmaster pleaded.

I shook my head, my mind drawing a blank. _...No!_ _How should I know?!_ "DAMN!" I swore loudly, rushing to the panel and hitting random buttons as quickly as I could, turning the valve, and trying any way I could think of to make the Garden turn.

"Yes! We're turning!" Kanoi shouted happily.

We watched for a moment, frozen to our spots as Balamb Garden began to pass over the city of Balamb, crashing into the outside wall. But then it began to turn, heading out into the ocean instead.

As the Garden crashed into the light blue waters, there was a violent shake, and we all staggered as the waves rushed around us. Garden settled smoothly and began to float gently across the water as the waves settled down.

"Alright Shane! You did it!" Kapri cried happily, jumping a little with a bright smile on her face.

Sighing in relief, Headmaster Kanoi turned to us and nodded with a small smile. "...Phew! Shane, everyone, a job well done." he praised eagerly. "I think the worst is behind us now."

Somehow, I didn't feel the same. "...Where are we heading?"

"We'll drift along for now...until we figure out how to maneuver the Garden. So, it looks like we can finally relax for a while." he said with a thoughtful nod. "And spend some time considering what to do next." Then he chuckled. "So much for my room. Where am I going to change now?"

(Shane's Room, Normal POV)

After splitting up from the others, Shane headed back to his room for some well deserved rest, but unfortunately, his mind was too worked up to allow him to sleep. All kinds of questions and thoughts looped around his mind, making him frown and rub his temples when a headache began to form.

It was times like these... Boring times with nothing to do...that Shane didn't like.

Lying quietly on his bed, Shane sighed and looked at the clock beside him befor his eyes traveled to his gunblade case, where inside, lay his beloved Lionheart gunblade. With a roll of his eyes, he looked back to the ceiling and placed his hands behind his head befor allowing his mind to wander.

_How long has it been since we started moving? There's not much more to do now. We've taken care of all the monsters in Garden._

It had taken the majority of the day to capture or kill the remaining monsters. Those captures were returned to the Training Facility, and those killed were left there as food for the others. Gruesome, but no one felt right about dumping the bodies in the sea, and they couldn't just keep them lying around Garden.

_I don't think I ever saw anyone run so fast. Dustin sure loves his hotdogs!_

Of course, Dustin's first move once everything was done, was to run to the Cafeteria, hoping and praying as loud as he could, that there were still hotdogs left. Shane certainly couldn't blame him, though. Balamb Garden's hotdogs were pretty famous for being some of the best, and there were always line-ups for days for them.

_Oh yeah... I still have to report to Headmaster Kanoi. There's a lot of things I want to talk about, too._

But, would he have the courage? Would he be able to question orders and find out what was going on?

_He's probably still busy, trying to re-establish order in Garden._

Or enjoying the viewpoint from our newest bridge. Yeah...that seemed more likely. _Cam_ would be the one trying to re-establish order in Garden.

Groaning in irritation, Shane massaged his temples with his fingers as he sat up and got to his feet, walking over to his window and looking out it.

_...We're in the middle of nowhere. Man, I'm bored... I hate having nothing to do. It gets me to thinking too much._

He supressed a yawn and frowned.

_I hope Marah and the others are all right. Was it wrong of me to let them go? I wonder how Tori and Hunter felt about it. Knowing Hunter, he'd take it personally... Tori? Who knows? _

_That Sorceress... Who is she? Why does she seems so damn familiar? Why fire missiles at Garden? I know it's more than just the attack on her. And what about Blake? Is he ever coming back? I'll get even with him, next time._

Laying back down, Shane soon drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep. He didn't know how long he'd been out, but when he opened his eyes again, he jumped a little to find startlingly blue ones looking at him. Blinking the groggyness of sleep away, he rubbed his eyes and sat up, finding Kapri standing by his door with a blush and teasing grin on her face.

"Hey."

He remained silent but nodded back at her, slowly.

She bent down a bit and pointed into his face. "You looked so adorable, sleeping like a baby." she teased.

Blinking a moment, Shane felt his face heat up and covered his face, acting like he was waking up still, while really, he was trying to hide his blush.

Laughing lightly, Kapri shook her head. "Come on, get up. Let's go." she instructed firmly.

"Go where?" he asked in confusion.

She clapped her hands and leaned against the door. "Give me a tour of Garden!"

A blink... Then another one... "...Is this another of your orders?"

She paused before shaking her head slowly, looking dead serious. "No. I just want you to show me around. You know, get acquainted with the place." She clasped her hands in front of her and batted her eyelashes at him cutely. "Please?"

With a sigh, Shane stood up and strapped his gunblade to his belt. "...Fine." he said irritably, heading out the door.

They made their way to the Directory in the main hall, all the while, Kapri was bouncing around excitedly.

"This Garden is so big! Do you think it's as big as Galbadia Garden?" she asked eagerly.

Not something he wanted to be reminded about. Biting back a scowl, he shrugged. "Who knows?"

She pointed to a path they'd ignored. "What's over there?"

"The Cafeteria." he said drolly.

"And over there?" she asked, pointing to another path.

"The Parking Lot." he said simply.

Stopping, Kapri placed her hands on her hips and frowned a little. "Shane, I appreciate you taking me on a tour, but could you make it a little more fun? You know, like a normal tour?"

_What does she want fro me?_ he thought with a shrug, making his way first to the Cafeteria. Once standing in the semi-crowded place, he pointed to the counter. "This is the Cafeteria. Obviously, this is where we take our meals. But keep in mind, there's always competition for the good stuff. Especially the hotdogs. Some of the hotdogs are so popular, you'll be lucky just to see someone eating one." He pointed out the short line-up, in which Dustin was the next one to be served. "That's why you see the line every day. If you get here too late..."

Dustin was next up to be served, but when he asked for a hotdog, the lady sighed and shook her head. "We're sold out for today. Sorry." she said, and he hung his head before walking off.

"...That's what happens." Shane finished, holding back the urge to laugh.

She nodded for a moment. "...I see." Then she began to laugh.

Blinking for a moment, Shane narrowed his eyes in confusion. "...What's so funny?"

Shaking her head, she held up a hand. "You're so serious when you're explaining... It's just...odd..."

Crossing his arms over his chest, Shane sighed and rolled his eyes. "You're the one who asked for a tour." he pointed out.

She sobered up immediately and looked apologetic, though she still had a teasing glint in her eyes. "Oh, I'm sorry. You don't have to get all mad, like that."

He raised an eyebrow. _...Whatever._

They went to the Quad, the Infirmary and the Parking Lot, but there wasn't much to say about the places, though Dr Shayla did ask them to send in Headmaster Kanoi if they saw him. The next stop was the Training Center.

Standing at the entrance, Shane cheked his blade to make sure it was loaded and ready before turning to Kapri. "This is the Training Center, or, as we call it, the Monster's Lair. The monsters are left to run loose so that the students can get a feel for real battle. Wanna give it a try?"

Kapri sighed and rolled her eyes. "You know, I can imagine you doing this as a first date. You're so romantic..." she said sarcastically.

_First...date...?_

Blinking for a moment, Shane sighed and walked past her, making his way to the Library next. As they entered the large Library, he watched as she took in the peaceful atmosphere of the place with a smile.

"Wow! This is so cool! Mind if I take a look around?" she asked with pleading eyes.

Shaking his head, Shane watched as she ran off with a called out 'Thanks!'. Pursing his lips, he wandered to the Reading room in the back for the fun of it and stopped when he noticed a familiar redhead reading a book. Walking up to her slowly, he remained silent as she turned around and gave him a smile of recognition.

"Hi."

He nodded, reamining rooted to the spot he was standing on. _...It's her..._ "...I saw you in the infirmary."

She nodded and kept smiling. "You saved me from the monster."

"Who are you?"

She tilted her head. "Try and remember..."

_Remember?_

"It's be heartbreaking for me to know I was forgotten." she quipped softly, though she looked fairly serious.

_So I _have_ met her before?_

"It's nice to be able to talk about old times, again." she said quietly, turning back to her book.

Taking the slight dismissal, Shane left the room in a confused state, meeting Kapri by the door but saying nothing to her as he walked back out to the main hall. There, he was met with a Garden Faculty member, and frowned deeply as the man rushed up to him.

"Student ID number, 41269, Shane Clarke?"

He nodded quietly.

"The Garden Master wishes to see you. Please report to the Garden Master's room, right away. Take the elevator to B1." he said firmly before walking off.

Shane turned his head a little and saw a deep fear in Kapri's eyes, as well as a deep-seeded anger. Not knowing why, he reached out and squeezed her shoulder reassuringly before walking off, ignoring any response she might've had.

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So, he met the strange redhead again. Anyone figure out who it is, yet? Come on... Look back over previous chapters and you'll figure it out. LOL.

Uh-oh... They're gonna go meet the Garden Master... Hmmmmm...

Hope you like it.

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"Greedy son-of-a-bitch! Why did I ever bother talking to you?!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi.


	25. Confronting Garden Master Lothor

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : I'm very sorry for the lack of updates. I'm trying to get at least two chapters a week, but because my schedule has changed, the 7-10 chapters has gone down significantly. I'm just trying to keep up and update at least once a week, at the very least.

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(B1, Kapri's POV)

Ok, so I wasn't expecting that.

I didn't even realize Shane looked at me, but I must've looked worried, or something, because he actually tried to reassure me. That's _so_ an un-Shane-like thing to do!

But at the moment, all I can think about is that we're about to face Lothor. The same guy I hoped never to see again. Would it be _my_ Lothor? Would he know me? Come after me? I didn't know. To be honest, I don't think I've ever felt such a strong urge to run and hide under my bed.

Or maybe Shane's bed.

At least I know that I'd be safe there.

So, here we are. Taking the elevator to B1, the Garden Master's room. I might not be fluent in the workings of this world, but if he's such a big influence on the Garden, shouldn't he have some mega-sized room up on a second floor, or something? Why make a home out of a dark, dank basement?

"Please! Listen to me!"

I gasped quietly, staying by Shane's side, as we exited the elevator, only to hear Headmaster Kanoi's voice coming from a little ways around a bend. What was he doing here?! This was the very same guy that demanded he be found and killed just a short while ago!

There was a loud ding behind us and I whirled around to find Dustin stepping off the elevator, looking confused as he looked around until his eyes landed on us. He narrowed his eyes in confusion and waved a little before running up to us.

"What're you guys doin' here?" he asked in confusion.

I raised an eyebrow and noticed that Shane crossed his arms over his chest as we both remained silent.

"What? Oh, me? I just came down here 'cause I saw you guys come down here." he said with a shrug.

"Let go of me! I'm not finished!"

I spun back around, and watched with worry as a Garden Faculty held Kanoi by the collar of his shirt, dragging him closer to us before pushing him away.

Kanoi glared angrily past the Garden Faculty and shook his head. "Greedy son-of-a-bitch! Why did I ever bother talking to you?!" he shouted in a rage. "SeeDs are brought up for the future! That that future is now! Why can't you understand?!"

Blinking in shock, I was torn between fainting and bursting out laughing. Ok, so this guy was far from the Kanoi I knew, but I never would've imagined that he held the balls to talk like _that_!! I chanced a glance at Shane and Dustin and noticed they seemed to be in shock as well. Apparently, they'd never heard him this angry before, either.

The Garden Faculty member shoved him to his knees, but Kanoi wasn't done yet.

"Dammit! I should've never trusted you! I wish I could go ten or so years back! To tell myself that you're nothing but a money grubbing son-of-a-bitch! Then I never would've built this place!"

I noticed Shane flinch and look hurt by the comment before he hid it behind a strong mask. I knew how badly that comment hurt him. How deeply. Whether he admited it or not, this place was his home.

Stalking angrily towards the elevator, Kanoi stopped a moment and looked surprised to see us there. "Shane?!" he looked at Dustin and I before his eyes turned guilt-ridden and he sighed. "You heard everything?"

Shane nodded. "...Yes."

"I'm embarrassed to say, but even us old men lose our tempers." he offered weakly. "Let's get out of here." That last bit was stated with clear venom in his voice as he got on the elevator.

"Sir, I still have to give you my report!" Shane called, turning to the elevator.

I got the feeling Kanoi was going to put it off. He really seemed like the type to not want to listen to this stuff.

Sure enough...

"Why don't you stop by my office later and we'll talk about it then." he said as the elevator doors closed and took him upstairs.

"You're the SeeDs that returned from Galbadia, correc?"

I spun around and noticed a Garden Faculty member standing right behind us. Taking a nervuos step back, I wondered if he really know I _wasn't_ a SeeD.

Shane turned and nodded grimly, a look of anger residing deep in his eyes. "Yes."

"It's about time. Master Lothor has been waiting for you." he said with clear irritation. "Come."

We walked along behind him, around the corner, to a large room with what looked like a giant machine in it. I don't really know how to describe it, but it seemed to act as a life-support for something inside.

"Whenever Master Lothor calls, you'd best respond within 3 seconds." the man stated firmly.

"3 SECONDS ARE UP!" a loud voice boomed.

A type of doorway opened up and revealed Lothor, but he wasn't the same Lothor I knew. Not by far.

First, he was hooked up to the machine, obviously keeping him healthy or alive, or something. Second, he...just didn't look like my Lothor. He wore long black robes that fit around his bulbous body. His arms were...well, slightly larger than normal, going along with his body, but his hands were huge with extremely long fingers, and behind his black mask, his face looked more squished into it than it did before.

I could see from the look on Shane's face that this was a shock to him, and Dustin looked really grossed out. To be honest, he wasn't pleasant looking before, but now... Well, let's just say that when we get out of here, I _seriously_ hope we never have to see him again. My breakfast was close to making a come-back.

"GIVE YOUR REPORT ON THE SORCERESS." he boomed as he glared at Shane with yellow eyes.

Shane looked a little embarrassed and I knew it was from the lack of time to properly come up with a report. Not to mention, I doubted he expected to be facing the Garden Master rather than the Headmaster.

He visibly swallowed before nodding and saluting. "...We failed to assasinate Sorceress Miko."

I frowned to myself, hearing that name. I remembered that it was Kanoi's wife and Cam's mother, back on earth, but I wondered if she had the same connections here, on Gaia.

"Confirmation of Headmaster Kanoi's order was made at Galbadia Garden... After Hunter Bradley of Galbadia Garden joined us, we set off to carry out the 'Sorceress Assasination' order from Balamb and Galbadia Garden..."

"BALAMB AND GALBADIA'S ORDERS?!" Lothor shriek angrily, slamming his hand down on a console. "YOU WERE TRICKED!"

I gasped and Shane paled considerably. "I...don't understand." he offered weakly, looking almost afraid to question Lothor and his goons.

"EXPLAIN TO THEM!" Lothor commanded one of the Garden Faculty.

One of the men came up and bowed to Lothor before turning to us. "Master Lothor knew all about the alliance between the Galbadian President and the sorceress. He heard it from the Galbadian Garden Master, himself."

"Galbadian...Garden Master?" Shane repeated in confusion.

"THE MASTER OF GALBADIA GARDEN IS A SUBBORDINATE OF MINE NAMED TYZONN." Lothor explained with a cold glare.

I _so_ didn't like the scheming look in his eyes at that moment.

The Garden Faculty went on to explain how everyone knew that the sorceress would use Galbadia garden as her base, because she is so closely related to the Galbadian Government. Apparently, Lothor sent the order, himself, but Tyzonn, instead of using his own SeeDs for the battle, enlisted our help, so that the blame could be put on Balamb and Galbadia wouldn't suffer.

"THAT-THAT BASTARD!" Lothor screamed in anger, slamming his fist on the wall of the little bubble he was in.

"Are you saying that Balamb Garden had nothing to do with that order?" Shane asked incredulously.

The Garden Faculty shook his head and explained that we'd been in the wrong place at the wong time, making us prime targets for this mission. Like we already knew, the sorceress was the one to order the missile attack on Garden, and they seemed to insist that they had to make peace with her.

"Wait a minute. That's just..." Shane shook his head with a frown.

I nodded a little, knowing what he was going to say, and agreeing totally. _That's just stupid!_

"In order to do so, we needed to hand over those involved with the assasination attempt on her. We needed to show Garden's sincerity."

_What sincerity?_ I thought darkly. So far, all I'd heard were blatant lies. They handed over innocent SeeDs that had nothing to do with the attack and they knew it. If I didn't know better, I would've sworn this was some sort of attempt to destroy SeeDs completely.

Lothor sneered from his seat. "OFFER THE SEED'S HEAD ON A SILVER PLATTER AND PRETEND WE OBEY THE SORCERESS!"

"Liar." I snorted, glaring at him. There was no way he was being honest with us, and I really felt it was a waste of time listening to this garbage.

"Wha... Why aren't we fighting the sorceres?!" Shane demanded angrily.

Spinning to face him, I felt my jaw drop. I didn't know so much about this Shane, compared to my own, but I _did_ know that questioning orders was something he didn't care for. Then, I began to grin and turned back to Lothor, folding my arms over my chest. _It's about time!_

"What about all the training we endure every day?! What good is it?!"

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?! YOU LOST TO SORCERESS! QUIT YOUR WHINING!" Lothor yelled angrily.

"And why don't you just quit your lying?!" I shot back with a raised eyebrow. "Send them SeeD to show Balamb Garden's sincerity?! Please! You don't care about that!! All you care about is saving your neck!"

"Kanoi was saying the same thing..." one of the Garden Faculty mused out loud.

Suddenly, the ground shook and lights began to flash on and off on the machine Lothor was in. His cold yellow eyes glared at the two Faculty and they cried out in fear before running off. Quickly, we armed ourselves, knowing something was about to happen.

"KANOI?! THAT IDIOT KANOI DISPATCHED SEED TO KILL THE SORCERESS! AND IF YOU FAIL? THE GARDEN WILL BE DONE FOR!"

"And your ass is toast." I said indifferently, checking out my nails and making a face.

He snarled. "QUIET, FOOLISH GIRL! MY GARDEN! IT WILL BE ALL OVER! THAT IDIOT KANOI. HAS HE FORGOTTEN THAT IT WAS I THAT PUT UP THE MONEY TO ESTABLISH GARDEN?! I WANTED TO OFFER THE SORCERESS KANOI'S HEAD ALONG WITH SEED, BUT THEY SIDED WITH HIM! THIS IS MY GARDEN!" He roared.

"No! It's not just your Garden!" Shane yelled, swinging his gunblade wildly.

"THEN WHO'S IS IT?!" Lothor challenged. "KANOI AND MIKO'S?! THAT PATHETIC MARRIED COUPLE?!"

I blinked in shock and noticed that Shane's face, along with Dustin's had gone as pale as mine felt. But out of the three of us, Shane looked the most confused and hurt from the info. Probably because in my world, they had married and had a son, and Dustin wasn't as close to Kanoi as Shane himself.

"What...?" he asked shakily, the look in his eyes telling me that he was refusing to accept that knowledge easily.

Lothor squinted at us for a moment before he growled loudly and raised one of his deformed hands. "...NOW I GET IT. KANOI AND MIKO ARE TRYING TO TAKE GARDEN AWAY FROM ME! YOU'RE ONE OF KANOI'S FOLLOWERS, AREN'T YOU? PREPARE TO DIE!!"

The lid of the machine closed over him and two nodes on either side of his pod began to glow.

"Shane!" I called, standing by his side nervously as I watched one of the nodes change from blue to yellow.

"BLUE, YELLOW, RED! LOTS OF MAGIC WHEN RED! AS LONG AS COLOR STAYS, I'LL ATTACK SEEDS WITH MAGICS!" Lothor taunted loudly from inside his protective shell.

Shane closed his eyes and I knew he was doing that drawing technique. A large light blue light swirled out of the life pod and into his body before branching out and touching Dustin and I. Instantly, I recognized the presence of another Guardian Force, Leviathon.

Frowning, I regarded the pod and nodes carefully. They were made of metal, but when Dustin cast a Thundara on the yellow node, it was reflected back at him, showing that they were protected against magic.

The blue node turned to yellow and the yellow turned to red.

Dustin growled and ran at the life pod, doing three kicks to it before punching it hard. His face paled considerably and he jumped back, limping and holding his fist while shaking it.

Apparently, that didn't work.

I drew high level elemental magics from the nodes before aiming my crossbow at the red one and firing. It hit the screen, cutting across it, and in a flash of light, the node turned back to yellow.

Shane cast a Thundaga on the life pod and it hit severely, and I got an idea.

"Shane, use Thundaga on Lothor's pod!" I called with a determined stare. "Dustin! You and I will take care of the nodes! As long as they don't turn red, he's basically helpless!"

They nodded in understanding and Shane cast Double on himself before casting two quick Thundaga spells. Dustin and I attacked at the same time, and both yellow nodes turned to blue.

Then the pod shook violently and we all lost our balance, rolling or jumping out of the way when pieces of debris from the roof fell towards us.

The blue nodes turned to yellow before quickly turning to red.

"...Crap." I groaned as I stood back up.

Dustin raised an eyebrow and shook his head. "So much for being 'basically helpless'!" he called to me.

I didn't bother to retort, but watched as Shane summoned Quezacotl who attacked all three at once, and both nodes turned to blue, and Lothor's pod suddenly began to smoke. There was the sound of an explosion and the lid flipped open, revealing a rather pissed off Lothor glaring at us.

"DAMN YOU SEEDS! THIS IS MY GARDEN! YOU CAN'T DO AS YOU PLEASE!" he roared.

Raising my hand, I grinned crookedly. "Um, just so you know, I'm not a SeeD." I pointed out before whistling sharply and calling Angelo. He ran to my side and howled loudly, causing a bright beam of moonlight to cascade over us and make us temporarily immune to Lothor's attacks.

Shane used his gunblade to hit him six times before Dustin ran forward and pummeled him with his fists. Jumping up, he did a backflip and kicked him before driving home a spin kick and jumping back to our sides.

The machine began to shake wildly and Lothor looked around as it exploded all around him. Letting himself fall back in his seat, he was engulfed by the explosions and the lid closed, locking him inside.

"What the hell was that?!" Dustin cried as he stared at the machine in shock.

"That was definitely not my Lothor." I said with a raised eyebrow. "This guy was uglier...but not by much." I mused.

"Forget about it for now." Shane said quietly.

I looked at him and frowned, noting that his face seemed schooled to be blank. Then I shook my head. "I can't believe you just said that! I think what happened is really serious!" I cried.

His head snapped to me with a glare that made me think I might've stepped over my bounds. For all intents and purposes, I was only a guest here, and it was by his generosity that I was allowed to stay. I knew that what happened was bothering him, but he needed to talk about it, damn it! Not just close up and hide!

"What' the point in talking about it now?!" he snapped. "You don't know what's going on, either!" He closed his eyes and slapped a hand to his forehead as he shook his head. "This is crazy." he muttered in disbelief. "I don't know what's goin' on anymore. I feel like a helpless puppet being manipulated by some major scheme."

"Shane..." I walked over to him and hesitantly put my hand on his arm.

Looking at me a moment, I could see the silent apology. He nodded a moment later and sighed. "Yeah... I'm going to see the headmaster."

Dustin and I followed Shane to the elevator and to the first floor. I paused a moment with a frown, when he exited and headed in the direction of the Infirmary, but quickly remembered that Dr Shayla had asked to see Headmaster Kanoi. So with a sigh, I ran after him and followed them into the Infirmary.

"Do you want to see the Headmaster?" Shayla asked with a sigh.

"Yes, now." Shane said as firmly as he could while still being polite.

Fidgeting a little, Dr Shayla looked uncertain if she should let us in, and sighed. "Well, he's kind of-"

"It's all right now." Headmaster Kanoi's voice called from a room. "I think I'm about done crying now."

Still a little hesitant, Shayla gestured for us to enter and we did, finding Kanoi standing with a dry smile beside the bed.

"You all see me in such embarrassing states." he said as he rubbed the back of his head, his eyes a little red from the tears. "What shall we talk about?"

"What's the real meaning of SeeD?" Shane asked with a frown.

Pursing his lips, Headmaster Kanoi rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "SeeD... SeeD is Balamb Garden's elite mercenary force. SeeD will destroy the sorceress. The Garden will train SeeD members."

I blinked for a moment. _So Balamb Garden's SeeDs are specially bred for fighting the sorceress in particular?_ It sounded a bit odd, or perhaps, like something that had taken a long time to plan out.

"The many missions around the world are only training for the final mission against the sorceress." he finished with a sigh and a regretful look in his eyes. "But now the sorceress has become a great threat. The final mission has begun."

"Please, tell us about Sorceress Miko. I heard she's your wife." Shane asked with confusion.

The sad look in Kanoi's eyes grew as he looked down at the bed. "You're quite right... She had been a sorceress since childhood. I married her, knowing that. We were happy. We worked together, the two of us. We were very happy. Then, one day, Miko began talking about building a Garden and training SeeDs. I became obssessed with that plan. But I was very concerned with SeeD's goal, that one day, SeeD might fight the sorceress. She laughed and told me that would never happen. However..." He trailed off into a mournful silence.

Shane nodded with an understanding look before sighing. "...And this Garden Master Lothor?"

"Besides the fact that he's an ass." I put in, grinning cheekily when I saw the corners of Shane's mouth twitch as he hid a grin of his own.

Kanoi looked up at me in surprise before chuckling a moment. "He's from the Shumi Tribe."

_The what-what?_ I thought blankly.

"A black sheep of the tribe, one might say. We met while I was running around, trying to raise the funds to build Garden. He became interested in building the Garden, and we hit it off. Thanks to hid funding, we were able to build Balamb Garden. However, we needed an enormous amount of funds to run Garden, so we began dispatching SeeDs all over the world. Lothor's idea was right on the money. An enormous amount of capital began flowing in and the Garden began changing. We lost sight of our high ideals. The truth was covered up. That's probably enough. I guess it was my fault, for giving up control."

Shane nodded again. "What do we do now?"

"We can't float around forever." I added with a frown.

Kanoi nodded. "I just hope we can get things back to the way they were."

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Shumi Tribe - (Shoe-me Tribe) - I don't know how to explain it. It's a small village of Shumi in an isolated, northern continent. They are not human, and sometimes, evolve into Moombas, which is considered evolving into a higher species. Umm...what else? ... Oh! They're very proud of their inhumanly big hands. LOL.

There shuld be some more explanation in the next chapter. Like, who's the woman Shane saw in the Infirmary and saved in the Training Center? Is the Dream World _just_ a Dream World? And possibly a little on why he's the way he is...

Hope you liked it.

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"...Sis..."

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R+R please

Thank you.

Tenshi


	26. The Strange Red Head

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : Sorry about the title, but I think it's mainly focused on the strange red head that Shane met in the Infirmary and saved in the Training Center. There should also be a tiny bit of explanation on the Dream World, and even tinier explanation on why Shane is the way he is. Also, cookie for who gets what I'm talking about in the Flashback. Anyone sound familiar? LOL.

And to those wondering about Marah, Dustin and Hunter, keep wondering. LOL. If you don't already know, I don't want to give it away.

And lastly, just a little note, but the _island_ isn't floating. It's the Garden itself that's floating. LOL

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(Main Hall, Shane's POV)

Now that we were done talking to Headmaster Kanoi, and Garden Master Lothor had been dealt with, we were at a loss of what to do. I could continue Kapri's tour, but wasn't really looking forward to that. I could go back to my room and get some more sleep, but it was much too early and I wasn't tired, anyway.

So instead, I settled for walking around Garden, letting Kapri and Dustin trail along behind me because they couldn't think of anything better to do, either.

Heading out of the Infirmary, we made our way to the directory, when Cam came rushing down from the elevator, looking really worried about something. "Shane! Have you seen my father?"

Raising an eyebrow, I nodded and gestured with my hand in the direction of the Infirmary. "With Dr Shayla at the infirmary."

"Sounds like trouble." Kapri put in with a worried look. "What's wrong?"

Shaking his head, Cam raised a hand to his face and sighed. "Go to the 2nd Floor deck and see for yourself. There's a ship approaching. It could be Galbadians, or worse... The sorceress might be aboard, coming to attack us. I have to tell father right away!"

Running off, Cam left us behind and I shook my head before rushing to the elevator, making our way to the 2nd Floor deck. _A...Galbadian ship?!_ I thought in horror. Garden was pretty much defenseless, since we became mobile and the whole Garden Master Incident.

As I raced onto the deck, I noticed a small ship approaching. It didn't look like a combat ship of any kind, but was well crafted. On the front deck of it, stood three people in white fighter's uniforms.

"Is Headmaster Kanoi there?!" One of the men called with a wave, once they were close enough for them to be heard.

Frowning, I grabbed the hilt of my gunblade warily. "No, he's not here!" I called back. "Are you from...Galbadia?"

"We're SeeDs!" the female called lightly. "This is Miko's ship! We are Sorceress Miko's SeeDs!"

My frown deepened. _...Sorceress Miko's... SeeDs?_

But it didn't make any sense. If Sorceress Miko knew nothing about SeeD, and wanted to destroy us... If SeeD was trained to _fight_ the sorceress... Why did she have her own SeeDs?

"We're coming aboard! We are unarmed!" the other male called.

They threw a rope ladder up and it hooked onto our Garden. Climbing it, we were soon face-to-face with three white uniformed SeeD members, and drew our weapons, preparing for possible combat.

The lead man raised his hand with a peacful look on his face. "Please." he said softly."We come in peace. We wish to speak to Headmaster Kanoi. Where is he?"

"I'm right here."

Spinning around, I noticed Headmaster Kanoi walk on to the deck with a confused look, and hesitantly sheathed my blade.

"Sir!" all three SeeDs chorused as they stood at attention and saluted. The lead man nodded and sighed slowly. "We've come for Kelly. I'm afraid it is unsafe for her here, now."

The Headmaster nodded slowly. "Yes. I'm afraid so."

Frowning, I remembered back to the last trip to the Dream World. _Kelly? The little girl from WinHill?_ I thought in confusion. My frown deepened as I made a connection, and I felt my eyes widen. I realized who she was, but still...why I felt like I met here a long time ago, _that_ I still hadn't figured out.

"You know how she is, Shane? Could you please go fetch her? She should be someplace on Garden." Kanoi said softly.

_Who are these guys?_ I mentally questioned suspiciously, glancing at them warily. _How are they connected?_

"Shane?"

Snapping back to attention, I nodded immediately. "...Yes sir!" I said, saluting before leaving the deck.

Once inside the door, Cam nodded to us. "I'll help you look, too." he said before walking off.

"Shane..." Dustin seemed a little confused. "Kelly's that girl, right? Y'know, the little girl Tommy was takin' care of?"

"Probably." I said, distracted.

"Let's split up and find her." Dustin suggested as he made a face. "Man, she could be anywhere!"

As Dustin left, Kapri frowned and stepped in front of me. "Hey Shane, who's Kelly?"

"Someone from the Dream World." I said simply.

She didn't look satisfied, but nodded slowly before leaving to the elevator, to do her own searching.

Heading straight to the library, I walked past a lot of people and straight to the back room, finding the very same red head there, still reading a book. And just like before, she seemed to sense I was there, turning her head but not looking at me. "Yes, Shane?"

"Are you Kelly?" I asked uncertainly. She certainly did look like an older version of the girl from WinHill, but I couldn't be sure.

She nodded ever so slightly. "Yes..."

"You're Kelly. _The_ Kelly." I stated in disbelief. How in the world didn't I realize this before? _What is going on?_ "You know...Tommy, don't you?"

"I do." she confirmed, nodding her head again. "I really do love Uncle Tommy."

_So it's not just a dream, is it?_ Shaking my head, I growled. "Then tell me!" I snapped in desperation. "What is it we experience?!"

Sighing, she turned and stood up, looking into my eyes briefly before looking away. "I'm sorry, Shane. It's hard to explain. But one thing... It's about the past."

_So...we're viewing the past?_ It made a twisted sort of sense, and explained how we were seeing people we'd never met before. How else could Kelly be here and know about Tommy?

Crossing the room to the other side, she gently leaned against the table behind her. "People say you can't change the past... But still, if there's a chance, I wanna try."

_Change the past? Is she serious?! Give me a break!_ I thought darkly. What could she possibly _want_ to change about the past? As far as I'd seen, she and Tommy were fairly happy... Unless I'd missed something. Then a thought hit me... "Are you the one responsible?!?" _For putting us in danger with those damn visions?! _"Are you the one who's been sending us back? Back to that 'Dream World'?!"

"I'm sorry." She looked down sadly, but I could tell she really depended on me.

_...Not again. So much I don't understand..._ "Why me?!?" I cried in shock as I stumbled to the chair she's been sitting in. Laying my hand on the back of it, I stayed hunched over as I felt tears come to my eyes. "I have enough problems as it is! Don't include me in this mess!"

"...I'm sorry."

_I know._ I could feel it and hear it in her voice. I could hear the tears that threatened to spill down her face. She counted on me. For what? To change the past? I don't know, but I don't feel worthy of her trust. "Don't." I said shakily, shaking my head as I moved and fell into the seat, sitting with my head bowed. "Don't count on me..."

I heard footsteps enter the room before Cam's voice called out to me. "Shane, did you find Kelly, yet?"

"Um..." I turned my head ever so slightly and watched as she nervously raised her hand. "I'm Kelly."

"Are you alright?" Cam asked in concern, and she nodded before walking over to me. Leaning down, she whispered in my ear and gave my shoulder a squeeze before leaving with Cam, leaving me to my thoughts.

What she said to me, was...

_You're my only hope._

(Dormitory, Shane's Room)

_Why do people depend on each other? In the end, you're on your own._

I learned that the hard way. First my parents, then my sis... Even the people at the orphanage and the friends I'd made. Either they left me, or I'd forgotten them, it's been so long. I know my family didn't _want_ to leave me, but they were killed. Sis was adopted, leaving me alone. I couldn't remember much about anyone else...

And sadly, I can't go back to the orphanage, because it's in ruins now. The couple that owned it, left a long while ago.

Still, I can't seem to shake the fact that they're all closer than I think, too.

_I've made it this far by myself..._

But was that true? I had to depend on someone for a shelter and medical assistance, but other than that... I got the reputation of a lone wolf, because I would never open up to anyone. I was never cold to them, or mistreated them, like Blake, but I never really let them in, either.

I think... That's how Blake and I differed. Whereas he was cold to so many people, he actually let them in too, so despite his temper, he still had such close friends. Taylor and Eric, they knew better than to take his temper seriously, and stood by him always.

I wanted that, but... I was so scared to let them in. I was terrified that I'd lose them. I'd put a wall up, to keep them out, but I could feel them digging for the holes and worming their way in. It got me to thinking, maybe I need to put up a new wall?

_Sure. I couldn't do a thing when I was a kid... I depended on others, but... _

Shaking my head, I sighed and rubbed my eyes.

_I'll be the first to admit that I'm here because of other people..._

Frowning deeply, I glared at the ceiling and groaned.

_I'm fine by myself, now. I've learned all the skills I need to know to survive. I'm not a child anymore._

I rolled onto my side and faced the wall, allowing my walls to come down as much as I dared, and letting a single tear slip from my eye as I curled into a fetus position on the bed and tried to ignore the pain in my heart. For as tough as I acted, it still hurt so much. I felt alone, and it hurt.

_That's a lie. I don't know anything. I'm confused. I don't want to depend on anyone. How can I do that?!? Someone tell me... _

More tears came and I felt myself shaking.

_Someone...? Please... So I'll end up depending on others after all..._

**Flashback**

Shane, no longer a man, but a young boy, stood under the leaky roof over the front porch of the stone building that served as the orphanage. Outside, the place was surrounded by lush green grass and healthy looking bushes and trees with a few wildflowers peaking in fron the flower field in a different part.

The building was fairly old and beginning to fall apart, but it was home to at least half a dozen kids. Two girls and five boys.

Standing on the porch, the boy watched with sad eyes as a vehicle pulled away, the sad face of a girl, a red head, looking out the back window.

The rain made it hard to see clearly, but it was like the weather agreed with how he felt. The sky was almost black, and the rain poured down fiercely. The bushes and trees bowed under the ferocious weight of the rain, and swayed with the cold winds that blew that day.

He rubbed the tears out of his eyes, only to have more replace them, before he sniffled. "...Sis..." He sobbed a little and tugged on his red shirt with a little fist. "...I'm...all alone now." He almost looked so hopeless. "But I'm doing the best that I can... I'll be ok without you, sis..." Why did it sound like he was trying to convince himself?

A little brunette boy with dark skin ran past, chasing a slightly taller, fair skinned boy with dirty blonde hair.

"I'll be able to take care of myself..." he continued, sniffling shakily as more tears came to his eyes.

A little blonde girl, slightly older than him, came running up to him and looked at him with big blue eyes that filled with tears as she looked at him. She looked like she tried to smile, but it came out as a sob instead.

Finally breaking down, the child version of Shane ran into the building and hid in one of the many unstable, abandoned rooms to cry to himself.

**End Flashback**

Hearing a sound, I opened my eyes slowly, wondering why I kept being woken up from my sleep. Once again, my eyes met with light blue, only this time I didn't jump. I guess, I almost expected to see her standing there.

I moved a little and frowned when I realized I was still curled in a fetal position. Shaking my head, I rubbed my eyes and straightened up, staring in confusion at Kapri, who wore a tiny, embarrassed smile as she waved a little.

"Hey, again." she said softly.

Standing up swiftly, I blinked when she looked startled and took a hasty step back. "I wasn't asleep." I said firmly, blinking myself, to clear my vision.

She gave a soft, teasing smile and bent forward at the waist. "Oh, really? I think I heard you talking in your sleep." Grinning openly now, she shrugged and turned her back before looking coyly over her shoulder at me. "I'm not telling you what you said." she teased.

I shook my head, wondering if she heard me saying anything about 'sis', but pushing it aside and I decided to act like I didn't care. Waving my hand, while remaining silent, I looked out the window a moment and heard her sigh.

"Hey, let's go for a walk."

Raising my eyebrow, I turned to look at her. "Again?" I asked incredulously. _Did you forget everything already?!_

Laughing a little, she gave me a look. "That was a guided tour! This is just a walk..." she tried to justify.

"Just go by yourself." I stated, frowning a little at the painful memory of the dream. I didn't really feel like dealing with anyone or going anywhere right now. "It's safe here." _Now..._

"It's not that I want a guard with me." she said with a huff as she placed her hands on her hips. "You know... You're always too deep in thought."

_Tell me about it._ I thought dryly, wholly agreeing with her.

"Why don't you lighten up a little?"

_If only it was that easy..._

"It's not good to think too much. What I'm trying to say is..." She trailed off as she seemed thoughtful before she grinned and giggled a little. Bowing, she giggled again. "It would be my honor...to have your company, your highness, in hope that I may get your mind off of things." she finished as she stood back up, trying to look dignified but settling for giggling again. "How about it, your highness?"

I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing. She wasn't so much funny as she was adorable when she acted like that. Instead, I sighed and thought about it. On one hand, I just wanted to be left alone, but she obviously wasn't going to allow that to happen. On the other, staying here would get me to thinking, and I could use a break from that. "Fine." I said with a sigh.

She giggled and bowed again. "Thank you, your highness! Alright, let's get goin'!" she cheered, practically dragging me out of the room once I had my gunblade.

We made our way out to the main hall, where the PA system activated, and Headmaster Kanoi's voice was heard all over garden.

"Hello everyone. This is the headmaster speaking. The lines have finally been fixed and I'm glad to be back on the air! Hurray!" Suddenly, his voice grew paniced and he screamed in horror over the PA.

The Garden began to violently shake and I turned my head, grabbing Kapri's arm as she staggered and bracing myself to keep my balance. I wasn't sure what was going on, but if felt like the Garden had run into something.

"Shane! This is the headmaster speaking!" His voice was panicked. "Please come to my office right away! Repeat! Please come to my office right away!"

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Yay, so maybe...a few questions answered? LOL. Anyone get what I was talkin' about in the Flashback?

Hope you like it.

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" We've landed at Fisherman's Horizon"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	27. Crash Landing at FH

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : Ok, so you know a little about Shane's past. Cookie to who can name the boys running in the background of his flashback. LOL.

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(Balamb Garden, Bridge)

Exchanging a worried look with Kapri, I took off to the office, with her on my heel, and surprisingly, meeting Dustin on the way. We took the elevator up to the bridge, where we found Headmaster Kanoi running back and forthe between confusing consoles, a PA microphone on his hands.

"Everybody, please remain calm." he instructed shakily.

I raised an eyebrow at this. _Might work better if you didn't sound panicked yourself._ I thought dryly.

"Also, please do not leave Garden under any circumstances until you are permitted. We will try to get things back to order A.S.A.P. Thank you for your cooperation." Putting down the microphone and hitting a switch, he turned and jumped a little, spotting us. "Ah, Shane, thank you for coming. Here are your orders. We've landed at Fisherman's Horizon."

_More like Crashlanded._ I thought dryly, schooling my face to remain blank as I listened.

"Please go ashore with Dustin and Kapri. Find the local Mayor and apologize for this accident. Tell them we come in peace. Then take a look around the city while you're there, too."

I nodded and saluted. "...Yes, sir." _Why do I have to go?_

"Is there a problem?" he asked with a slight grin.

"No..."

He nodded. "SeeD is not just a special force for combat. I want you to see the world... To broaden your horizons. I have high expectations for you, Shane. Now go." he said with a grin.

Nodding again, I frowned as I turned and made my way to the elevator, where I only just realized Kapri and Dustin had stayed behind. Once I rejoined them, they crowded around me in excitement, and I had a feeling they already heard our newest mission.

"What's up? Are we going to Fisherman's Horizon?" Dustin asked with a grin.

"We're here!" Kapri stated, checking her crossbow and grinning at me.

Nodding slightly, I sighed. "We'll land at Fisherman's Horizon. We'll make an official apology and then observe the town for a bit."

"Yo, go to the 2nd Floor deck to get out. The front gate's blocked." Dustin said, making a face.

With a sigh, I led them to the 2nd Floor deck and out, ignoring a kid that was staring curiously at a 'Do not push' button on a side door. Once outside, I stopped in shokc, noticing a large metal rig that was set up to Garden, leading down to the small community of Fisherman's Horizon. It was a lot of metal catwalks attached together, with a couple of men along it.

The city itself, from what I could see, was very peaceful, and from up here, very beautiful. It was the shape of a perfect circle, most of the walls just outside the community itself, made of clear, sparkling glass and reflecting the sunlight. The giant solar panel. They relied on solar power, rather than electricity. The houses themselves were rather messy, and there were few plants. The windmills and water towers were all over the place, and I grimaces when I realized we'd knocked a windmill down in the crash.

Then, there was an old, abandoned railroad on a long bridge. If I remembered correctly, this was the world's longest bridge. It left land on one continent and stretched across a massive ocean, to a continent almost halway across the world. In fact, it was supposed to be the only way by land, to reach the hidden, isolated city of Esthar.

"Here they come." someone called, and I turned to find some tough-looking guy glaring at us as we stepped off the deck and onto the metal catwalk. Remembering the mission, I sighed and kept my face schooled to be as pleasant as possible. "We've come to warn you, before you go ashore. Do not engage in any type of armed conflict inside the city. we do not tolerate belligerence here, understand?"

I frowned deeply and nodded slowly, not liking the condescending tone I was getting from this guy. "Yes. We are representatives of the Garden and we come in peace." I stated as calmly as possible.

He looked surprised at the attitidue before nodding and giving a small smile. "Welcome to Fisherman's Horizon. We just call it FH. You should go visit the mayor. His house is in the middle if the city. He's the head of FH."

Another man whistled as he took in the damage and shook his head. "What a mess!"

Scratching the back of my head nervously, I shrugged. "Sorry about that... We lost control of Garden, so it was inevitable."

The guy laughed and shook his head and I wondered how the hell he could be so calm about this mess. Then again, no one else seemed too worried about it, either.

"Nah, don't worry about it. What's important is that nobody got hurt."

I could make out an old fisherman down on the ground below us, shaking his head with wide eyes as he stared at the remnant of a dock he must've been standing on. Transforring his gaze to the Garden, his eyes travelled up it until they locked on mine and he scowled, raising his fist and shaking it menacingly, yelling something that we couldn't make out, he was so far away.

"We love fixing stuff, anyways." the guy continued, obviously not seeing the fisherman below us. "Relax. Kick back and enjoy your stay at FH."

We walking along the catwalk until we came to a tower. Following the metal ladder up to a new catwalk, we travelled along it as well, until we came to a lift that one of the men I'd seen earlier, was operating.

"Need a lift?" he asked with a grin as he fiddled with the controls.

I nodded and he held up a hand, signalling one moment as he worked on some wires. "Ok. So you guys goin' to Esthar?"

Frowning, I raised an eyebrow, wondering why he'd think that. "Esthar?"

He nodded and looked thoughtful. "I guess you're not goin' there. A lot of people who stop by here, are goin' there. You know, that hi-tech city. It's just beyond the train tracks. The trains are down, so the best way to get there is to walk. What a joke, huh?"

Hi-tech city and their trains are down? Sounded more suspicious than a joke, to me.

"Anyways, you guys had an accident and came here, right? I guess I shouldn't keep you. Get on."

We climbed on board and he started the lift. Once we made it to the bottom, we raced along the tracks to the stairs down to the ctiy. I blinked and squinted against the violent glare of the sun off the panels, and managed to safely make it down, where I rubbed my eyes, trying to get my site back to normal.

Once I could see clearly, I noticed a large house right in front of us and figured out that it belonged to the mayor. Walking to the door, I knocked politely, and was taken a back when I noticed an older man answer it with a glare in his eyes. He gestured for us to come in and we followed him up to the second floor, where he gestured us to sit, and sat beside a younger blonde woman.

"I'll get straight to the point. When are you leaving?" the man asked almost eagerly.

_He's not wasting any time._ I thought with a raised eyebrow as I shrugged. "...We'll leave as soon as Garden is capable of moving."

"Any idea when that'll be?" he asked, rubbing his chin as he thought.

"I'm afraid not. We only discovered that the Garden was mobile a short while ago. Therefore, we don't even know how to move it. We're still in the process of understanding everything."

"Our technicians will assist you." he said with a determined nod. "They should be able to repair and service everything. How does that sound?"

_Like you're trying to get ride of us. _I thought about it and frowned deeply. _That means we'll have to let outsiders onto the Garden. I can't make that decision alone._

"Go consult with your leader if you don't have the authority." he said dismissively.

I stood up and nodded, turning to leave when Kapri's inqusitive voice caught my attention and made me slap my forehead with my palm, shaking my head.

"S'cuse me, why do you want us to leave so bad?"

Her tone was innocent, but I was certain there was more to it than just curisoity.

Shaking my head again, I turned and rolled my eyes at her. _Please, just keep your mouth shut! They have their reasons. Who cares?_

"We don't want military organizations in FH. You rely on force to solve your problems. That is in direct defiance of our principles." the mayor stated with his eyes softening a bit.

The woman we realized was the mayor's wife, nodded. "We believe that any problems can be solved with discussion. If you can reach a mutual understanding, there is no reason to fight."

I nodded in understanding. _No arguement there. Trite and dull as hell, though._

"Violence only leads to more violence. We believe your presence will attract violence. That's why we want you to leave as soon as possible." the mayor concluded firmly.

Getting back up, I gestured for Dustin and Kapri to follow me. "Let's go back to Garden."

As we exited the house, Dustin growled and kicked at the ground angrily. "Man that old geezer really pissed me off!"

I shrugged. "Forget it. You can't expect everyone to welcome us with open arms."

We made our way to the stairs and started up them slowly. It was a long walk, and there didn't seem to be any hurry, despite what the mayor let on. The walk was silent, but I could feel Kapri's eyes burning into my back before the sensation faded and I guessed that she was looking away.

Near the top, a man suddenly rushed down, screaming about Galbadian Soldiers.

We exchanged looks before rushing to the top of the stairs, and sure enough, I could hear gunfire in the distance. I was debating on whether or not to interfere, when I noticed the mayor rishing up the stairs behind the young man, followed by his wife, and paused as I listened to their conversation.

"Galbadians? Are they armed?"

His wife shook her head with an uncertain smile. "It must be some sort of mistake."

The young man nodded, and pointed in the direction of the gunfire. "They arrived at the station, and were armed big-time!"

"Let's not panic. President Deling and I are old acquaintences." the mayor insisted firmly. "I'll go talk to them and clear things up."

I shook my head. "President Deling is dead. Galbadia is now ruled by the sorceress."

Starting off to deal with the Galbadians, the mayor's wife ran in front of us and glared at us. "Wait! The Galbadians are here because of you, right?"

I shrugged. _Maybe..._

"You'd better take full responsibility. It's your fault!" she scolded.

_Our fault?!_ I thought incredulously. Sighing, I shook my head. _Fine, we'll take care of them. I don't like her tone, though._

The mayor came up and put a hand on her shoulder, shaking his head at her. "We mustn't rely on them. They won't be able to solve anything without fighting."

I crossed my arms over my chest and raised an eyebrow. _Don't tell me he's going to try to reason with them..._

"I'll go talk to them."

_...He's dead..._

(Normal POV)

The trio ran through the fishing town of FH, fighting off Galbadian machines and soldiers. Nothing really stood a chance against them, because of how strong they were, but still, there was a foreboding sense in the air.

Shane frowned deeply as he ran, wondering why the Galbadians were here. He knew it was more than just Garden. How could they possibly know Garden was here, in such a short time? Fact is, they shouldn't have even known Garden was still in one piece, yet.

So, what were they doing here?

Another set of machines and soldiers down, a few hundred Gil richer.

Kapri kept shooting Shane wary glances, noting the deep look of concentration in his eyes. He knew something was up. Chances were, they all did. This was about mroe than just Garden, she could feel it.

Dustin didn't know _what _was going on, but he knew something wasn't right. He could feel the adrenaline run through his veins, making his hits that much more powerful whenever they fought.

There were mentions of 'finding the girl' and 'Sorceress Miko's orders', but not enough to really make sense of.

Their only hope lay at the station, where the mayor was with the leader of the small army.

Soon, they made it to the station, and Shane immediately crouched down, hiding behind a small pile of scrap metal as he listened to the conversation. He saw the mayor being held by the collar, by an elite soldier, and felt Kapri nudging his arm in a sign they shouldn't just sit there, but pushed her arm away and listened in closely.

_Why are they wasting their time with the old man, if they're after us? It just doesn't make any sense._ He thought suspiciously. _What are they talking about?_

"I told you. I've never heard of this girl Kelly, before. There's nobody here by that name." the mayor said in as soothing and stern a voice as he seemed able to muster.

Shane frowned at this and briefly noted the confused looks on Kapri and Dustin's faces. _Kelly?_

The soldier shrugged. "Fine. Then we'll just have to torch the city."

They could hear the grin in his voice, as the mayor's head shot up and he shook it wildly, staring pleadingly at the soldier. "Wait a minute! I'm telling the truth! I've never seen this girl!" he protested.

The guard shrugged again. "It doesn't matter, old man. We're gonna burn down this place, anyway. Sorceress Miko's orders."

Biting his lip, Shane grabbed the hilt of his gunblade. _Burn down the city? First attacking the Garden, and now this? What's the sorceress thinking?!_

"No, please, I beg of you! Don't!" the mayor begged.

Tightening his hold on the man's shirt, the soldier grabbed a sword. "I think I'll start with you."

Jumping into the area, Shane slashed at the guard's arm, causing him to drop the mayor to the ground and clutch his arm with a pained hiss. "Who the hell are you?!" he demanded angrily.

_Someone who _doesn't_ know?_ he thought with a raised eyebrow. Almost all the soldiers they'd run into knew they were SeeDs and tried to kill them. "...We're SeeDs."

The guard took a step back and grabbed a small radio from his shoulder. "SeeDs! Hey!" he called into the radio. "Get the Iron Clad over here!" he shouted.

Looking to the mayor, Shane felt guilty that they were bringing a battle into his little town. He understood his feelings, and really felt bad for this. Kneeling at his side, Shane sighed and shook his head a little. "I'm sorry, but we have no choice."

The mayor refused to look at him, but Shane got up and joined the others as the soldiers came rushing at them.

It took a while. It seemed like they had to fight the entire dispatchment. It started out as four soldiers, then two elites, then three elites and a soldier and kept going. As strong as the group was, it was still difficult for them to deal with this many soldiers, but they managed to get it done.

But, as the final soldier fell, a loud rumbling was heard, and a rather beat-up looking machine came rumbling along an upper roadway, turning at a whole in the path and launching itself down to the area they stood in, landing on the edge of a large whole that dropped down to the ocean below.

It looked like it used to have six single engine rooms on it, but only two remained. It also looked like it had been in the fight of it's life and barely survived.

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Ok, I cut it here because I accidentally continued it from 'Normal POV' to 'Shane's POV', so his POV starts the next chapter.

I'm getting lazy peoples. Sorry about the lack of updates. From 7-10, down to 3 in one week. Boy do I feel sad. :S Well, I'm still working on it. I just started at a gym, so I'm often not home, but don't think I'm just going to give up on this fic.

Does the machine at the end sound familiar to anyone? LOL.

Hope you like it.

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"Would you have been worried about me, too? Y'know, if I were with them, instead?"

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R+R please.

Thank you. :)

Tenshi.


	28. FH Reunion

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : Boy, am I bored! LOL. Still writing for everyone!

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(Shane's POV)

"We got a big one on our hands!" Dustin said, casting a quick Double on himself as he then cast Haste on himself and Kapri.

"No duh!" Kapri shot back, casting Double on herself before casting Haste on me and Protect on me.

With a shrug, I cast Double on myself before casting Protect on Kapri and Dustin.

Just in time.

The machine rumbled loudly, and a large beam of white light shot out, hitting Dustin and knocking him back a few feet. I watched as he tumbled and rolled before stopping and shaking his head. Getting back up, he limped back up to us, and I realized that without the Protect, he'd have been knocked right out with that one hit.

We all charged up our next attack, and Kapri whistled loudly, calling Angelo to her. Raising her arm, the dog jumped into her crossbow and she shot him at the machine.

For a moment, I wondered if she'd gone insane, but Angelo glowed brightly before spinning and hitting the machine, leaving a nasty dent in the side before he spun away, landing unharmed at Kapri's feet. She gave him a treat and he ran off.

Blinking a moment, I shook my head and cast Thundaga twice on the machine, briefly noting that it seemed indecisive on what it wanted to do. On one hand, it looked like it wanted to attack, but it kept sliding back and forth. And I swear, I heard voices inside, screaming about not knowing what was going on.

"Make it stop!"

Glancing at the others, they didn't seem to notice the voice, and though it sounded so familiar, I brushed it aside as my imagination.

Dustin cast Thundaga twice and Kapri cast a Cura on Dustin before casting another on herself, for taking a smaller beam hit to her side.

"How the hell do we stop this thing?"

The voice was faint, and I frowned as I wondered if I'd heard it at all. Kapri seemed to pause for the slightest moment but shook her head and continued her attack, and Dustin showed no sign of noticing at all.

I cast two Thundagas on the machine before charging up my attack and racing forward to slice at the machine multiple times. Jumping back, I stood ready as Dustin and Kapri combined their attacks, hitting the thing four times with Thundaga spells, and I lowered my blade as it shook violently and exploded, shifting backwards towards the ledge.

A door opened on the top, and I noticed a familiar head of long blonde hair before the machine fell over the ledge and towards the ocean. Feeling my eyes shoot open in shock, I took a single step forward, and relaxed once again when I saw a couple sets of arms raise up, clinging to the edge of the hole.

As I watched, Marah, Tori and Hunter climbed up, dusting themselves off and taking potions to cure minor wounds.

I felt a sigh of relief escape me and looked to the ground, unwilling to let them see that I was happy they were ok.

"Shane!!!"

Glancing up quickly, I noticed them running towards us with relieved smiles. Marah stopped right in front of me and saluted with a huge grin on her face, and I couldn't help the excitement and happiness that leaked out. _Yes! They're really alright!_ "Marah. Tori. Hunter. It's good to see you're alright." I said, relatively calmly.

"Say, what happened to Garden?" Hunter asked with wide eyes as he looked around.

_A lot's happened..._ "Garden's safe." I told them with a firm nod.

"Really?!?" Marah cried with huge blue eyes full of hope. Jumping around, she laughed. "Whoo-hoo!!!"

I couldn't help the smile as I crossed my arms over my chest and shook my head. "So, what happened to you guys?" They had been gone a long time, and now to show up in a heavily armored, _enemy_ suit? Must've been an interesting story.

"Shane, let's leave that for later." Tori said with a raised eyebrow, shaking her head and shuddering a bit.

_...I guess..._ Turning to Kapri and Dustin, I nodded. "Kapri, Dustin, can you take them back to the Garden? I'll join you there. I just want to take a look around, first."

Dustin nodded and raced off with a grin, followed closely by the others, save for Kapri, who started off, but then paused and looked at me with her arms clasped behind her back. She had this almost, surprised look on her face, and I frowned, wondering what she was thinking.

"You know... You just surprised me." she admitted with a blush as she looked away. "You looked and sounded so happy to see them."

_Huh?_ I thought blankly.

"It was the first time I'd seen you so honest." she explained with an embarrassed look. "It was...really sweet."

Deciding against lying, I shrugged. "I was just really happy to see them. What's so surprising about that? Is there something wrong?"

She quickly shook her head and raised her hands to ward off more questions, her face turning a bit red. "No! There's nothing wrong! They're your comrades, but moreover, they're your friends." she said softly.

_...Friends, huh...?_

"Hey Shane..." She looked at the ground and scuffed one foot in front of her like a child. "Would you have been worried about me, too? Y'know, if I were with them, instead?"

Blinking for a moment, I allowed the question to sink in before feeling my eyes widen. _What the hell? Why is she asking me this?! I don't know!_ Looking at the ground, I thought wildly, trying to think up a good answer, because knowing her, putting it off wouldn't work. "I...uhhh...don't know." I muttered, trying to think and then cursing my mind when it went blank on me. _Damn it!_ "I...maybe...? Uhhhh...I don't know..." I repeated, scratching the back of my head as I felt my face heating up.

"Oh my gosh!" Kapri's eyes went wide and she began to giggle. "You're turning red! You're blushing!"

My face grew even warmer, but I struggld to glare at her. _What? ...No I'm not...!_

Her giggling grew louder and she held a hand over her mouth, but I could still understand what she was saying. "You're so cute! ...Taking it so seriously!"

If it was even possible at this point, I could've sworn my face grew even warmer. _...The hell? Why's she toying with me?!_

Shaking her head, she waved. "Catch ya later, Shane!" she called before taking off.

Making my way around the station, I checked and made sure there were no more guards before heading back to the Garden. The mayor refused to speak to me, but I could see a hint of understanding in his eyes, showing that he didn't fully blame me for this.

Heading back to the catwalk, I absently greeted the man running the lift and got on while I thought.

_Sorceress Miko... She's suddenly showing an interest in Kelly. ...Why? What does Kelly have to do with anything? Does this have something to do with the 'Dream World'? Is that why those White SeeDs came and took her away? They said they were Miko's SeeDs, but if that's the case, then why do they seem to be trying to protect Kelly from her? What's going on here?_

To say I was confused by this sudden turn of events would be an understatement.

When the lift made it to the top, I thanked the man and continued on, walking slowly along the catwalk until I came to a tower and spotted Hunter leaning against the railing, looking troubled by something. As soon as he saw me, he gave a crooked smirk before he nodded and stood up straight, following behind me, all too happily.

"The Headmaster gave the 'ok' for the technicians to work in the Garden. They're in there right now." he stated conversationally.

"Oh." Nodding absently, I raised an eyebrow to myself. _Who told him...oh._ I remembered that both Kapri and Dustin were there with me, so likely, one of them told him when they got back. _At least that's one less thing _I_ have to do._ I thought gratefully.

"Say..."

When Hunter trailed off, I sighed and let my head fall back a bit, looking up into the sky. Sighing heavily, I turned and faced him, crossing my arms over my chest. "...Yes?"

He scratched the back of his neck nervously and gave an embarrassed chuckle. "Those technicians seem very handy. I was, uhh...wondering... D'you think it'd be alright if I asked them to fix some other stuff?"

Frowning a little, I shrugged. "...As long as it doesn't slow down the work on the Garden, go ahead. Try not to ask for too much."

"Yeah, of course." he said easily, still looking troubled.

When he didn't move on, but silently fidgeted a little, I groaned silently and rolled my eyes when he wasn't looking. "...What?"

He frowned and seemed concerned. "Marah's feeling down right now. I thought I should let you know since your kind of like...everyone's leader. I think you should go talk to her. I know you're a klutz when it comes to these things, so I'll back you."

Glaring at him, I shook my head and turned my back to him. "...Where is she?" I grount out between gritted teeth.

"She's hanging out at the stage, but the Quad." He sighed behind me as we walked on. "Or what's left of it." he muttered absently.

As I thought about what he said, realization hit me and I frowned deeply as we neared Garden. _That's right. Marah's Garden Festival. The stage area was pretty much destroyed._ It was no wonder she was feeling upset, if she spotted it. For us, it would easily take weeks, to months to repair all the damage. Obviously, her mind was on the cancelling of the festival.

"Wow, I didn't expect all this heavy artillary."

Raising an eyebrow, I grinned and shrugged absently. "How else are they going to repair it? Hammer and nails?"

Hunter waved his hand in a dismissive mannger and grinned cockily at me as I turned to stare at him. "Hey, hey, hey!" he said in mock anger. Shaking his head, he smirked. "This isn't my department?"

I leaned back a bit and regarded him unphazed. "Then what is?" _Like I need to ask..._

"...Guna and women, of course." he replied.

Turning my back on him, I rolled my eyes with a grin of my own, entering Garden and making my way to the elevator. Taking it down to the ground level, I headed to the Quad, bypassing a lot of nervous-looking students, and made my way through the small park to the stage.

Marah stood there, looking out over the ruined area with a heartbroken expression on her face.

"Whew...this is so bad." she muttered with a halfhearted smile as she turned and saw us.

"Yeah." I agreed, nodding a little and trying to fight the uneasiness I felt. This _so_ wasn't my thing. "It's been crazy, with the Garden moving and crashing into FH. A lot's happened."

"Y'know, I really wanted to see a band perform on this stage. I even had my heart set on a few people. Oh well..." As much as she tried to act indifferent, I could easily tell this hurt her deeply.

_Man, she really seems down._ I thought as I tried to think of how to help her. "Come on. I'm sure there's still something you can do."

She blinked, then stared at me with wide eyes and blinked again. "...Shane? ...Being sensitive?" she asked in shock. "That's weird. You're the last person I expected to cheer me up. I must really look depressed."

I frowned at this. _What's so weird? I care just like everyone else. It's just that there are too many things that can't be helped. So why bother thinking about them?_

"Uh-oh. There you go again, into your own little world." she teased, beginning to grin. "And you're not gonna share anything, huh?"

_Why is she teasing me? I was just trying to help._ "...Yeah. Whatever..."

"Well, I think I'm feeling better. Don't worry about me, Shane." she said with a warm smile.

Turning to Hunter with a sigh, I rolled my eyes. "Hunter, you help her."

He raised an eyebrow before shrugging and nodding. "...Alrighty."

Suddenly, the PA beeped and Headmaster Kanoi's voice came over the speakers.

"Shane, this is the headmaster. Please come to my office, right away."

It beeped again to signal the end of the transmition.

Shaking my head, I started off. _What now?_

(Still with Hunter and Marah, Normal POV)

Still feeling pretty blue, Marah looked around at the wrecked stage, and uprooted plants. Dead electrical wires were everywhere, and pieces of the stage were clearly missing from the Garden completely.

"I guess there's no point in feeling blue." she said sadly to herself. _I mean, there's always next year._

Hunter grinned and nodded. "That's right. Let's get the fun started." he said happily.

Staring at him blankly, Marah didn't dare let herself hope that he had a plan. "Fun?" _Have you _seen_ this place?!_ "What fun?"

_I'm so brilliant._ he thought cockily to himself as he gestured to the stage. "So like...first, we'll ask the FH technicians to fix the stage. If they can fix Garden, this should be a piece of cake."

"Hmmm..." she almost seemed hesitant to accept the idea, though her mind and heart were screaming at her to say 'YES!!!'. "Do you think they'll do it?"

He nodded. "Don't worry. I'll back you. I'm sure they'll do it."

"That meanst..." That little sparkle of hope began to glow in her eyes again.

Hunter grinned cheekily. "Yup, you can have 'your band' perform on the stage."

"Whoo-hoo!" she cried, jumping up and hugging him briefly as she looked around happily. "Alright! Let's get this show on the road!"

_Score, baby!_ Hunter thought victoriously. _I'm all set to make my move!_

(On the Bridge)

Saluting, Shane nodded, glad to have the report done and over with..._finally._ "...And that about concludes my report."

Kanoi nodded thoughtfully with a frown on his face. "I see..."

"Oh, and one more thing... It appeared that the Galbadians were searching for Kelly. That seemed to be their main objective in FH. I believe that Sorceress Miko is behind all of this." _Kelly has the ability to allow people to experience the past. Maybe the sorceress is after her for this ability. What other reason could there be?_

"So, now the Galbadians are working for the sorceress, and were searching for Kelly in FH..." Kanoi repeated thoughtfully, seemingly confirming what he'd heard Shane say.

Shane nodded. And regardless of whether they found her or not, they had orders to torch the town." he finished.

"That would help reduce the number of potential hiding spots." Kanoi said wisely.

_...Of course._ Why hadn't he seen it before? It was so obvious!

"Most likely, the sorceress will not stop at this onslaught until Kelly is found. She will continue to hunt her, and burn everything in her path." His tone was resigned and pained, but his eyes were determined. "We can't wait any longer." With that, he turned and grabbed the microphone, flipping the switch to go live across the Garden.

_...So he's finally going official. About time._ Shane thought with a frown as he stood back and listened to the speech.

However, nothing in all his years of training, could possibly prepare him for what he was about to hear.

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Ok, so there really wasn't a break there, but I wanted to add it.

Ok, so Hunter's character is a shameless flirt. I'll say right now that you'll see a bit of Hunter/Marah fluff here and there, but it's something that can go either Dustin/Marah, or Hunter/Marah. I plan on it being Dustin/Marah. Hunter flirts with everyone, if you'll remember, so yeah... LOL.

Hope you like it.

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"Don't talk about this like it's been decided since my birth!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi.


	29. Concert and Talks

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : Yay! 3 chapters done in one day! Can I sleep now...? Please...?

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(Shane's POV)

"This is Headmaster Kanoi. I have an announcement to make. I have important news that I have to share with all of you. The Garden is being repaired right now. We'll leave FH immediately after it's finished. We're going on a journey. This is a journey to defeat the sorceress. Garden will now be used as a mobile base. The administration of Garden will be run by myself and the staff, as usual. This journey will involve many battles. A well-qualified leader is required for this."

Frowning, I listened carefully to his words. He seemed totally serious about what he was saying, but... _A well-qualified leader? Who's he mean?_

"Therefore, I am appointing Shane as your new leader."

I felt my eyes go wide and my heart jump into my throat. _WHAT?!?!?_

"From now on, Shane will be the leader. He will decide our destination and battle stategies."

_No! No way!_ I thought furiously, growing angry. _How dare he just lay this on me! And out of nowhere?!? I'm not ready!_ I thought, clenching my fists at my side. How could he?

"Everyone, please follow his orders. If there are any objections, please come see me in person."

_I can't believe this!_ I thought in shock as I watched him turn the PA system off and place the microphone down before he turned to me with a knowing smile, though it was small.

"Shane, we're under your command from now on." he said gravely, his smile fading. "This is your fate. It is your destiny to lead the way in defeating the sorceress."

I growled and shook my head, shaking with barely concealed rage. _How dare he! _"Don't talk about this like it's been decided since my birth!" I shouted.

_I don't mind fighting the sorceress._ I thought, turning and leaving the bridge, ignoring his pleads to listen to him. _It's unavoidable as long as I'm a SeeD member._ Frowning, I made my way to my room, ignoring the many congratulations I was getting from random people I didn't even know.

_As long as I'm a SeeD member? What if..._ I made it to my room and unstrapped my gunblade, throwing it unceremoniously into the case and stripping off the item pouch and extra rounds of ammunition. _What if I quit?_ Pausing, I stared at my gloves and sighed. To be honest, that just wasn't an option.

"Quit... And then what?" I questioned myself, out loud, sitting on the edge of my bed as I stripped off my jacket. "What do I have left?" This place was my home, my world. If I quit, I'd be forced to leave, and I had no place else to go.

_Don't even want to think about it. Just stop thinking..._ I chanted to myself, lying down and closing my eyes.

It only took about ten minutes before my thoughts began looping themselves again, and I opened my eyes with a grunt.

_I'll just have to do what I was told..._ I thought darkly, realizing there was no way around it. _Command the Garden and kill the sorceress. _

Didn't the headmaster understand how difficult that order was to follow?

_Howw does the headmaster expect me to take care of everyone? It'd be best to fight the sorceress soon, and end this nonsense. ...?!_

Blinking a moment, I frowned as a thought occured to me.

_But isn't she the headmaster's wife? He wants us to kill his wife?_

It certainly made sense. It was our duty, but just because we had to do it, didn't mean _he_ had to. He was backing out! He was putting me in charge, because he knew I'd do whatever necessary to accomplish our mission. He knew I wasn't as attached to her as he was.

_...What does it feel to have to give an order like that?_

(Quad, with the rest of the group, Normal POV)

"Hey, everyone." Hunter grinned at the group that sat in the circle. "Here's our producer, Marah."

Walking over to the group, she smacked his arm before sitting down at the head of the group, dropping a large pile of papers loudly on the ground. "Ahem! We'll be holdin' the concert as planned. This performance isn't just for us, though. It's also for Shane. Y'know, to congratulate him on his recent promotion."

"Sounds fun." Tori agreed with a smile as she pulled at the papers a little, only to realize, they were little musical scores. Blinking a moment, she pulled one out of the group and began to read it.

Kapri grinned and grabbed one herself. "So, who's gonna perform?"

"We are!" Marah exclaimed with joy, making everyone pale and stop whatever they were doing to stare at her in shock.

"Yeah, right." Dustin snorted, barely keeping from laughing.

"You're kidding." Tori said seriously. Seeing the devious look on Marah's face, she shook her head violently. "Oh, no way! You can count me out. I have no musical aptitude."

Kapri raised an eyebrow, remembering the night at Totally Talented, back on earth, when Tori had done a dance routine. _No musical aptitude?_ "Oh, really?" she bit back the urge to grin. "This I gotta see."

"Let's just give it a try." Marah pleaded. "We've got everything ready. All we need's four people."

"This is gonna be so much fun!" Kapri giggled.

Marah grinned and turned to her. "Oh, sorry, Kapri, but you're not gonna be a member."

Biting back the pang of hurt, Kapri looked down. "You're leaving me out?" she asked quietly.

"Uh-uh. I got something more important for you to do."

Blinking a moment, she looked up and saw the knowing look on Marah's face, paling a little as she began to worry about this 'more important' job of hers.

Finally, we got set up for everyone to try out different instruments. The auditions, if you will, actually turned out surprisingly good. Tori was tap dancing, Dustin was on saxophone, Hunter was on electric guitar, and Marah was on piano.

"Ok, we have until tonight to practice for our performance." Hunter informed everyone, handing out a musical score for each instrument.

Marah nodded at Kapri. "And that's when you're up."

Nodding a little warily, Kapri had a slight idea of what they wanted her to do and felt her heart skip a beat. "You can count on me." she said softly.

"It's gonna be a blast!" Marah cried, running back over to the piano to work on the piece.

(Shane's POV)

Laying on my bed was boring as hell. I took a small nap, but in the end, I woke up early during the night, wide awake and with nothing to do. Frowning, I sat up and swung my legs over the edge of the bed.

_...I'm bored... I wonder what the others are up to._

Standing up, I turned to my gunblade and was about to reach out for it when I stopped. Garden was still at FH, and though I shouldn't wander around without a weapon, it was fairly safe on board, now that Lothor was gone. So really, I didn't feel like I'd need it.

Shrugging, I sighed and grabbed my gloves and jacket, slipping them on before heading out of my room. Walking down the hall, I rolled my eyes as I entered the main path leading to the main hall.

Then I stopped cold, frowning at what I was seeing.

Kapri stood in the center of the path, whispering to Tori and Dustin. They obviously saw me and hurriedly whispered something more to her before they quicklly raced off, leaving us alone.

Keeping my frown, I walked slowly up to her, noticing she was wearing the same dress as before, when we first met at the SeeD Inaugeration Ball.

"You're not going anywhere." she said sternly, smiling at me as she stood in my path.

In the moonlight, I was caught by surprise at just how beautiful she was when she smiled. I don't know if it was my imagination, or if I was still half asleep, but with the silver light shining down on her blonde hair, and the red dress highlighting her pale complexion...

"So what's up?" she asked, and though it was dark, I could've sworn I saw her blushing.

I shrugged and yawned. _...Tired..._

"You look so down." she stated, tilting her head a little and allowing her blonde hair to fall over one shoulder. "Come on Shane, how old are you? You're still so young, so why don't you act like it for a change?"

._...Just tired..._

Ok, come on. Let's go to the concert."

_...Concert?_ "Why not?" I sighed. I knew her enough by now that if I refused, chances were she'd follow me around all night, chanting 'concert, concert, concert...' until I was ready to jump off the deck of Garden and kill myself.

"YES!" she cheered, jumping a little, though being careful of her short skirt. "Ok, let's go!" she said with a nod, grabbing my hand and leading me out of the Garden.

As we headed out to the solar panel leading to FH, I spotted Hunter and Marah at the top of the steps. MArah stood right at the top of them, and Hunter stood a little behind her, easily out of ear shot. When he saw me, Kapri raced to talk to Marah and left us alone.

Much to my disappointment.

I don't know about you, but when Hunter's wearing that triumphant and fairly lecherous grin, I'd really rather _not_ hear what he has to say.

"So, she convinced you, eh?" Hunter asked with a grin. Leaning in, he looked around suspiciously before whispering to me. "Looking good together. So like... I found this place... It's perfect for you guys."

_Give me a break..._

"It's by the stage. You can't miss it. I left an old magazine there. You can thank me later. Have fun." If it was possible, his lecherous grin grew even more. "Just let it all out tonight."

_Oh man, this guy is sick! _I thought with a frown, taking a step back, which he didn't seem to notice. "Are you finished?" I finally asked, hoping he'd get the hint.

Looking over his shoulder to Marah, he grinned cheekily. "I might be ther later, with a special someone, too."

Heading over to Marah, I watched with a frown as Hunter stood behind her. I felt a little like a big brother to her, and like it was my job to rpotect her from perverts like him, so I walked up behind him, knowing that my presence alone would bother him.

And indeed, he turned and scowled at me. "Come on man, I'm about to make my move." he hissed quietly.

Marah turned and smiled at me before waving. "Hey, what's up?" she asked with a grin before taking off town the stairs.

"Oh well..." I stated in my trademark monotone, though I was mentally laughing at him.

"Geez...Thanks a lot!" he groaned before chasing after her.

I knew his chances with her were pretty much shot, so making sure Kapri was with me, I headed down the stairs, making my way to where they had the stage. To my surprise, or perhaps not, since I knew these people... Tori was on one platform with tapping shoes on, Dustin was holding a saxophone on another platform, Hunter was on guitar on yet another platform, and Marah was on piano on the last platform.

Once they saw me, Marah grinned into the microphone. "Shane! You big stud! This is for you! Congratulations! Enjoy the show! Kapri, _don't_ let him get away!" she cried before they began their performance.

_...Whatever..._

Surprisingly, they were pretty good, but with as exhausted as they looked, I was guessing they took all day to practice.

I took about ten minutes to listen to them before I got bored and walked off. I didn't go far, but soon found a quiet, secluded ledge that overlooked the now dark solar panels, and found a magazine by the edge. Walking over to it, I frowned.

"Ohhh, a Naughty Magazine." Kapri stated with a look that seemed torn between being disgusted and laughing.

_I thought he was kidding._ But then again, sometimes I wondered about him. Sitting at the edge, I looked out over the panels and sighed. "You wanted to talk about something?" I asked quietly, knowing I was in for a lecture.

She sat beside me and sighed, looking thoughtful, concerned and almost confused, all in one. "Umm...it's about your promotion. Things are gonna get real tough for you, huh?" she asked awkwardly.

I refused to look at her. _I'd rather not think about it._

"Shane, I'm sure there'll be a lot of difficult things you'll have to deal with from now on. We were talking about that, and saying how you'll probably try handling everything yourself." Her tone seemed a bit scolding but with a hint of laughter to it.

_I probably will... _I knew myself well enough by now to know that old habits die hard.

"They know you too well." she continued with a small, fond smile. "I do, too, although I haven't been around you as long. Y'know, when you start thinking, you tend to frown like this.." she made a face.

Frowning to myself, I looked at her and knew our faces were a lot alike. Biting back laughter and how eerily similar our looks were, I swiped my arm out, acting like I was going to hit her, and watched as she quickly did a backroll, getting out of the way before she stood up and began to laugh.

To be honest, I wanted to laugh as well, but thinking back over everything she'd said, it was very sobering. With a sigh, I shook my head. "I'm out of here." I stated.

Her laughter stopped, and I paused, wondering what she'd say next. I could hear her footsteps approach and heard her as she crouched down behind me, her warm breath caressng my neck. "Oh come on! I'm sorry! But really, we were saying that...well... You can't handle everything on your own."

I felt a pressure on my back, and instantly recognized the feeling of her hands, but it was too late.

The next thing I knew, I was stumbling across the solar panels below us and spun to glare at her as she jumped down behind me. Swinging my arm out, I felt my hand ball up into a fist as I struggled to remain somewhat calm.

"That's it!" Kapri stated firmly. "Just let out anything!"

Walking up to me slowly, Kapri gave me a sad smile and I noticed how sad and watery her eyes were as she stopped not a foot away. Feeling my anger melt out of me right away, I stood there, not knowing what to say or do.

"Anything..." Her voice turned a little shaky and I felt my eyes narrow in confusion. "We want you to talk to us a little more, that's all. Y'know, if there's anything you ever want to tell us, or anything we can do, don't hesitate to let us know. I know it's not easy, but I wish you would trust us and rely on us a little more."

_Am I that untrusting...? _I thought in confusion. _Maybe I'm this way because I'm scared. Nothing lasts in this world. It feels great to have friends who believe in you, and adults you can rely on. That's why it's so dangerous, expecially if you become used to it. Someday, you're bound to lose everything. Everyone around you will be gone. Then what are you left with? Nothing... No one... It's so miserable. I never want to deal with that again. _

_I can't..._

_Even if it means being alone... For the rest of my life._

"What a night. Great music, good-looking guy..."

I felt my face heat up as Kapri's mock innocent tone brought me out of my depressing thoughts.

"Not only is he good-looking, but he's the sweetest guy, a great listener." she said with a smile as she absently walked back and forth, looking at the sky. "Right now, he's seriously considering everything I just said. He's shy and doesn't say anything, but I know." she grinned and looked at me before her grin turned forced. "So, what do you think? None of our business?"

"I appreciate your concern..." I offered weakly. "But-"

"No 'but's!" she yelled, glaring at me. "Just think about this. This might be the only time we'll all be together. So, as long as we're together, we might as well enjoy each other's company and...just talk, right?"

I didn't like the sound of that one bit. "...Just for tonight?" Frowning deeply, I raised an eyebrow at her and crossed my arms over my chest. "Forget it. I don't want friends that won't be around tomorrow." I stated coldly.

"God, you're such a pessimist!" Kapri groaned. "There's no guarantee in the future. That's why _today_, the time we have now, is important. Shane, we wanna help you, as much as we can, for as long as we can. We all love you."

I was certain her face turned a deep crimson as she paused and looked down. Was there a hidden meaning in those words? My heart clenched painfully and I looked away. _Just don't think about it._ I told myself.

"There. I said it." she said quietly. "Please don't freak out. We just wanna live, y'know. Live through this time together, with you."

Still looking away, I found myself thinking about it, but I was still hesitant. "...Together...?"

"Keep it n the back of your mind." she said softly. "Call on us whenever you want to. We'll be waiting. Like I said, who knows what's going to happen in the future, but I have a feeling we'll be together for a while. So, what's on your mind?" she smiled weakly and stared into my eyes when I finally got the courage to look at her. "Do you have any dreams, Shane?"

Eerily, that reminded me of the last real conversation I'd had with Blake, back in Dollet, during the exam.

"Anything you want to do with your life?"

Looking at her briefly, I shrugged. _...I've never thought about it..._ "That's something I'd rather not talk about." I stated uncomfortably. "What about you?"

She looked at the sky and shrugged in response. "...I don't know. I guess I don't wanna talk about the future, either." Walking forward, she wrapped her arms around my waist, startling me and making me freeze up.

_What the hell?!_

"But right now... ...I wanna stay right here...like this." she said softly.

Taking a moment, I managed to relax and lightly wrapped my arms around her shoulder, wondering al lthe while, why this felt so right.

(Shane's Room)

After a long night, I was awake early. Trying to get back to sleep wasn't as easy as I'd hoped, after everything that happened the previous night.

Laying on my bed, I frowned when sleep didn't want to come. I guess I had a lot more to think about than I expected. I ended up thinking over everything that had happened and everything that was said.

Closing my eyes, I sighed a little when I felt myself dozing off.

**Flashback/Dream**

The child-like version of Shane stood under the leaky roof of the porch again, watching the same car drive past. Sobbing quietly, he rubbed at his eyes and watched the sad face of his 'sis' get smaller and smaller.

A bunch of people in white uniforms came and adopted her, saying something about how it wasn't safe for her there, and something else about her 'Uncle'.

"...Sis... I'm...all alone now..." he said as more tears made their way down his face.

A little girl with brown hair, and a little boy with frizzy, curly black hair ran by, laughing as they did so.

"But I'm doing my best..." he fisted his red shirt in a little hand. "I'll be ok without you, sis." he vowed shakily. "I'll be able to take care of myself..."

A little blonde girl ran up with blue eyes that watered on contact with his own. She let out a shaky sob, and he lost it, running off to cry alone.

**End Flashback/Dream**

"Shane! Shane! Please report to the bridge immediately!" Cam's voice called over the PA system, and I sighed as I dragged myself out of bed.

_...What is it now?_

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The same dream/flashback, but I'm trying to show little differences in each.

Yay! A little Shane/Kapri fluff! Now, the actual fluff (if you can call it that) doesn't start for a long time, but I wanted to do SOMETHING!!!

Hope you liked it.

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"Why don't we head back to Balamb?"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	30. Return to Balamb

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : I've had the muse and energy lately, so I'm writing as much as possible so I can update sooner for everyone and have lots of chapters to update. :)

Ok, I just found out something I didn't know before. All I can say is poor Tommy. You'll find out in the next chapter, if you pay close enough attention.

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(Bridge)

As I marched on to the bridge, I noticed Cam, Tori and...uhh... What was his name again? ...oh, yeah, Xander.

They were standing there, waiting for me, and upon seeing me, they began to smile and applaud. Briefly, I noted that the strange panels had been removed and instead were three large levers that I guessed, were to move the Garden around.

Xander was standing in front of the center one.

Cam and Tori stood on either side of him and grinned at me.

"Greetings Commander!" Tori cheered.

Raising an eyebrow, I smacked my forehead with my hand and shook my head. "Don't call me that." I deadpanned.

Cam laughed a little and raised his hand. "We decided you should have a title, so Tori and I decided on Commander."

Nodding, Tori pulled out a clipboard. "Sorry to carry things out on our own, but Cam and I assigned duties."

"I'll take care of all the supplies needed on Garden." Cam stated seriously.

"And I'll help take care of the students with Dr. Shayla." Tori informed me. "You can just focus on destinations and battle plans. And, ah...will you let Marah rest for a little bit? I think she's still fairly exhausted from the missile base mission. She could use some rest. How does that sound to you?"

I nodded gratefully, and secretly admitted that after all her hard work, Marah deserved a nice, long, relaxing vacation. "...It's fine."

"Alright, I have some reports for you, already." Cam said, holding his own clipboard.

At this, Xander took a step foward and bowed slightly to me with a smile. "Hey, Shane."

Raising an eyebrow, I regarded him a moment before it hit me. He was the only other student to graduate with me, Dustin and Marah. Noding back, I remained silent.

"By the way, you know the FH Technicians that were fixing Garden? They just finished, meaning... The Garden's ready to go, anytime. Oh, yeah." he scratched the back of his head nervously. "I'll be piloting Garden. FH Technicians taught me everything about piloting this thing. Let me know when you're ready to leave."

Tori looked thoughtful. "Any suggestions on where we should go?"

Cam took a moment before a worried look crossed over his face. "Hey, why don't we go back to Balamb? We don't know what's happened since we left. Besides, Balamb might be their next target. It's a port town just like FH."

Tori nodded. "That's right." Her own face grew worried. "Shane, what do you think?"

_Why ask me? I agree... _Nodding, I sighed. "We're taking off." Turning to Xander, I nodded to him. "I'll direct you to our destination. Announce the departure."

"Roger!" Saluting me, Xander turned to a speaker and turned it on. "May I have your attention please. This is the bridge. The Garden will be leaving Garden shortly. Please prepare for departure. I will now hand over the mic to our leader, Shane."

Looking at them with wide eyes, I watched as Cam silently mouthed 'make a speech', and glared at them. "A speech?!" I realized the microphone was right in front of my face, and still on. Turning a deep red, I growled and glared at Xander. "Forget it! Cut the mic!"

(Balamb)

It took about a day to get back to Balamb, and I was horrified when I noticed a mobile Galbadian Garden sitting in the docks of the small port town. We managed to pull the Garden up on the beach and sat it a little ways away before Kapri, Tori, Dustin, Hunter and I disembarked, making our way to the town on foot, in hopes of sneaking in. We were going to leave MArah behind, to rest, but she found out and chased us out of the Garden, insisting on joining us.

But as soon as we set foot in the gateway, I knew it would be difficult.

There was a Galbadian military car parked sideways across the road, blocking our way into the town. And on the side where the sidewalk was still free, a Galbadian soldier stood there, wielding his gun, ready for attack as he eyed the few villagers that had been out of town when they invaded.

Dustin stepped back, his eyes wide, as he stared in shock at what was happening. Beyond the car, we could see soldiers walking amongst the villagers, some bullying the innocent people.

"What the hell?! What's going on here?!?" Dustin yelled angrily.

A middle aged man and woman stood over by a car rental shop. The man was holding the incredibly pale woman as she looked on with terror.

"We were forced out of town days ago. Our daughter's still at home, but there's nothing we can do." the man said sadly, and I recognized him as the hotel owner of Balamb. "With all these soldiers from Galbadia, you've got to stop and wonder if Galbadia fell to the hands of the sorceress."

"Yo...!"

I turned to find Dustin walking up to a guard while glaring at him. "What's goin' on in there?!"

The guard raised his gun in warning to back off. "This town is under the control of Sorceress Miko! The town is off-limits while we conduct our investigation! It will last for several days!" Eyeing us with a sneer, he raised an eyebrow at the girls in the group. "Once we're through with our investigation here, you guys are next. So just stay out and stay put!"

"...What's Galbadia want with a town like this?" I asked curiously, wondering if it was still to do with Kelly.

"What do you want?" he shot back warily. "You residents here?"

Dustin nodded and kept glaring. "YEAH, that's right! At least residents should be allowed in!" he growled angrily.

"It's OFF-LIMITS!" the guard repeated loudly, raising his gun and pointing it in Dustin's face. "You cannot enter or leave, you understand?!"

"Hah, who do you think you're talkin' to?!" Dustin yelled.

Getting an idea, I pushed him out of the way and faced the guard myself.

"Yeah? What now?" he asked coldly.

Keeping my tone emotionless, I bit back a smirk. "You said the town is off-limits... Does that mean we can't deliver a message, either?" _I hope this works..._ "That's too bad, we had some information on Kelly."

"W-What? Kell...Wait a minute!" He looked at us warily before getting excited. "Tell me everything you know about her! Do you actually know who she is?!"

I shrugged. "...Kind of." _Well, yeah, but I'm not about to give up what I do know._ "But we need to get inside to confirm something."

He paused again for a moment before nodding. "If you find out any information at all, report to the Commander! She's staying in the hotel! You'll be rewarded!" he said eagerly as he moved to the side and allowed us in.

The first thing we did is run around the town, trying to find out exactly what was going on. Some soldiers spoke about 'a new world order' and 'Galbadian rule', and yet others almost seemed sympathetic to Kelly. I found it a little amusing that despite their desperate search for her, all they knew was her name.

At the train station, I noticed a guard that seemed a little out of it. He complained of hunger and an upset stomach. Not really worth listening to, so we continued on.

Yet they all mentioned a Commander, staying in the hotel, and hinted at it being a woman. Who could they be talking about?

Finding a fairly pissed station manager, I'd also found out that the food supply to Balamb was cut off. They were starving the villagers, and yet, making them deliver any and all food to the Galbadian soldiers!

Finally heading to the hotel, I sighed when I noticed two guards standing outside the door. I walked up and explained about the info, but they seemed hesitant to let us through, believing it was likely rumor or something, and worrying about their salary.

Dustin demanded to be let through, and the guards repspoded by saying that the 'Captain' was on duty. First we were sent to speak to a Commander, and now a Captain?

With a resigned sigh, I turned and walked around the town, talking to different Galbadian soldiers in hopes of finding this Captain of theirs.

One in the town square seemed like it was a waste of time talking to us, but shrugged and answered anyways. "The Captain's napping spot? How the hell should I know?"

I hadn't asked about a napping spot.

"Well, he's probably not sleepin' in the streets, and with his bulky build, you won't find him on a roof, either." he said before walking off.

I really hoped that was the case. I didn't feel like scaling the roofs to find this captain, or I might be tempted to roll him off it.

I walked over next to the item shop and spoke to another guard, which seemed a little more friendly. "What was that? Where does the Captain nap? You know...I've been wondering that myself. Before you know it, he's no where in sight... Wonder if he has a secret hiding spot?"

Biting back a yawn, Dustin gestured for us to follow him to his house, where he was greeted by a tall, slender, older woman. He grinned and hugged her back before motioning for us to follow him upstairs, though he seemed a bit hesitant about it.

"Don't go touchin' anythin', ok?!" He warned us. "I just like to keep things clean..."

Marah raced past us and jumped on his bed before proceeding to bounce on it. "Whoo-hoo!"

Glaring at her, Dustin reach over and pulled on her arm, resulting in her falling and him catching her bridal style. He blushed a deep red before promptly placing her on her feet and shaking his head before looking at her sternly. "Yo! I just finished sayin' not to touch anythin' and now you're on my bed!"

She huffed and glared right back at him, though she quickly looked away and turned to a window. "Well, fine then!" she huffed in an indignant voice. "I didn't realize you were so...anal! You should feel honored that a very, very cute girl was on your bed, you know!"

Did she even realize just how wrong that sounded? By the various shades of red both their faces turned at that moment, I guessed they both did.

"He should thank me, right Shane?" she asked me sweetly.

"No, you're annoying him." I deadpanned.

He grinned and nodded. "Yeah, stop annoying me!"

"So, you're saying that I'm annoying?" she asked softly. Jumping off the bed she was sitting on, she glared at us both. "That's it! Shane, Dustin you're both going down a rank!" she threatened.

Rolling my eyes, I waved my hand dismissively, knowing she didn't have that kind of power and wasn't really serious.

Dustin on the other hand, got worried. "WHAT?!? You...You're kidding, right?!?"

Hunter shrugged and looked so bored as his eyes scanned the room. "Yeah well, it's not much fun spending time in a guy's room anywa-Whoa!!" His eyes landed on a set of older-looking rifles and his jaw dropped in awe as he carefully walked over and reached out with shaking hands, stopping just short of touching them. "What is that?!" His voice had raised an octave in awe. "These are some o' them old-school rifles!"

Dustin looked at him warily. "Those are my grandpa's! Don't touch 'em!"

"Oh man, oh man!" Hunter was bouncing around like an overexcited little school girl as he almost drooled all over them. "These are so COOL!" he squealed, yes _squealed_.

Blushing, Dustin rubbed the back of his neck before shrugging. "..Heh-heh... Well, alright... Go ahead, check 'em out." he agreed.

Instantly, Hunter was carefully sifting between the guns and picked one up, aiming it towards the window and checking out the scope and feel.

BANG!

Dustin jumped a foot in the air before staring in shock at the new hole in the wall. "YOOO!" he whined, running over and looking at it with wide eyes. "The _hell_ you doin?!?"

I shrugged and watched as Hunter put the rifle back down with an embarrassed look on his face. _...I knew he'd do that..._

(Brooks Residence LivingRoom)

As we headed downstairs, Dustin led the way into the living room, where we spoke to his mother.

"I'm glad you didn't beat up one of the guards, Dustin." she said with a wry grin once he explained how we got in. "The Sorceress threatened to burn down the city if anyone resisted."

"The Sorceress, is she here?" I questioned curiously.

The older Brooks shrugged and looked thoughtful for a moment as she seemed to try to recall. "I noticed a young woman... She seemed to be in charge. Had long blonde hair and was very quiet, except when she yelled about things. Was travelling with a young man... He didn't seem too bright..."

Frowning, I recognized who she was referring to, immediately. "Taylor and Eric... So they're here...?"

"Leave it to me!" Dustin cried proudly, obviously showing off to his mother, who looked anything _but_ impressed. "I'll take care of those jokers!"

_Does that mean Blake's here too...?_ I wondered silently. But it didn't make sense. Why would they turn on Balamb?

Heading back to the train station, I felt something was up.

"The Captain? It's the Captain's nap time now!" The guard told us firmly, before he stiffened up. "...Oops, I mean...uhh...He's on patrol! He's a very harder worker, always out patrolling! So don't bother him!"

Shaking my head, I turned to the others and we headed off. I found a suspicious looking guy in a black trench coat, walking slowly over behind the miltary vehicles parked by the docks. Walking up to him, I watched as he turned and grinned, revealing sunglasses over his eyes and slicked back black hair.

"You wanna find the Captain?" he asked knowingly. "It's pretty simple. He was just over fishin' off the docks, and came rushing through a short while ago with a large fish. You can probably use the that dog..." He pointed to a black and white spotted dalmation that stood alone on the docks. "To sniff him out. If he runs, just follow him. I'm betting he's used to chasing down the captain by now. The Captain _used_ to sleep here." he stated, gesturing to a small space between the cars and wall.

"The reason he moved was because the Commander almost ran him over in a car when she went out looking once. Chances are, he'd find a dark, fairly quiet place where there was no chance of him being run over."

As we walked towards the docks, I noticed a guard and questioned him.

"The Captain? Yeah, he was just fishin'. He caught a few and got all excited. Ran off sayin' he was gonna cook them right away." he said, gesturing back to the residential part of town."

(Brooks Residence)

As we raced back to Dustin's mom's place, I noticed the heavy smoke coming from her windows and paused for a brief second, wondering if they set the place on fire. Then I noticed the smell and rolled my eyes as we rushed into the house.

The smell of cooked fish.

As I suspected, the smoke was only coming from the kitchen, and Dustin's mom stood outside it with a clearly unhappy scowl on her face as she looked over the mess.

"Just now, a man came in and asked if he could use the kitchen... I think he cooked some fish. Now the whole house is filled with this strange odor." she said with a puzzled look on her face. "Must've been pretty bad fish to give off this odor. I wonder if he's really going to eat it? Said he was going to eat with his men. I hope nothing happens..."

We headed immediately back out into the town, and followed the smell, and confused faces of the townspeople to the station, where the guard staggered around a bit before falling over and rolling onto his back, groaning in pain as he held his stomach.

"Ugh... I thought it...smelled funny..." he groaned as he gagged a bit. "C...Captain... How c-could you... I f-feel...numb..."

I looked at the station manager and he held his hands up. "Don't look at me! Some guy came in and offered the guard some fish." Then he paused and looked at the man on the ground. "Hmmm... Looks like symptoms of Badamb Fish. It's similar in appearance to Balamb Fish. The guard should be all right in a few hours, but that man from Galbadia... He ate the same stuff, too! I wonder how he's feeling..."

Groaning in annoyance, I went back to the docks and found that dog again. If Eric really had eaten that fish, chances were he'd smell pretty distinctive, so kneeling beside the pup, I smirked as it barked and shot off back into town. Chasing after it, we followed it all the way back to the train station where it ran into the train, and a moment later, there was a crashing sound.

Eric appeared in the doorway and ran off, the dog trailing after him.

"It's Eric! ...Come on." I instructed the others.

Walking by the downed guard, I stopped and looked at him when I heard him mutter something.

"Heehheeheheee...grandmaaaaa..." he giggled. "F-Flower Fi-fields..."

Shaking my head, I turned and ran towards the hotel, seeing the dog standing to the side of the entrance and even the guards had moved away from the door. They stood well away from it and watched it warily, until we ran up and one of them turned to me.

"Hey, you! Stand back! This could get dangerous! The Commander's just about to-"

The door swung open and the guards jumped as Eric came racing out. He didn't even seem to notice us and turned to the doorway.

"YEOW! Ouuuch... T-Taylor... C-Control your temper, ya know? I was patrollin' just like ya told me, I even woke up that search dog, sleepin' on the job, ya know?!?"

_More like the search dog woke _you_ upfrom sleeping on the job._ I thought with a raised eyebrow.

"You guys, help me out here!" he yelled to the guards. "We've gotta calm Taylor down, ya know?!"

"ERIC!" Dustin roared angrily, flexing his hands in his gloves and glaring at the man.

Spinning around, his jaw dropped and he grinned a little. "Wooow! What're you guys doin' here?!"

"We're here to liberate Balamb, ya know?!" Dustin said with a smirk, which was quickly replaced by a frown as he turned a deep shade of red. "Uhh... I mean... We're here to liberate Balamb!"

Shaking his head, Eric grabbed a large staff with serrated blades on each end and swung it around. "Blake told us to give you a whoppin' if we saw you." Gesturing to the guards, he sighed. "You two guards help me out, too!"

"You'll pay for this, Eric!" Dustin yelled, racing forward to deliver a flip kick to the man.

I ran forward and sliced the guards multiple times, running between them with each hit, and jumped back to my starting point. Holding my blade to the side, I charged up the energy before jumping up and swinging my blade around me twice, resulting in a large energy wave that hit Eric and the guards, killing the guards immediately and causing Eric to stagger back.

Kapri shot her crossbow, which he deflected, and Tori and Marah attacked in tandem with their whips. One he caught around his staff, but the other snapped against his side, causing him to cry out in pain and buckle to his knees.

Hunter shot a volley of powerful shots at Eric, which he gain blocked with his staff, and Dustin ran forward, pummeling him with his fist.

Standing back up shakily, Eric ran forward and sliced at me with his double bladed staff, but I blocked the hit, countering with a Fira spell to his stomach. _Remind me to thank Blake, later._ I thought grimly, remembering when he'd used a trick like that a while ago.

Eric was launched back and fell to his side, groaning as he clutched at his stomach.

"Ugh, you got me, ya know..." he muttered with a scowl.

We entered the hotel to find Taylor standing in the center of the room with a clearly pissed of scowl deeply etched into her face.

"So, I guess you're the Commander, huh?!" Dustin sneered as he cracked his knuckles. "Well pack your bags and get the hell outta Balamb!"

She looked around before her scowl deepened. "...ERIC, DEFEATED...?!?"

"That's right, BABY!"

I don't think he noticed he glare he got for calling her that or he would've quickly shut up.

"Now, where's Blake and the sorceress?!? You're all goin' DOWN!!!" he pumped his fist into the air.

_For the love of Hyne..._ "Dustin, calm down." I told him firmly before turning to Taylor. "Taylor, looks like you're on your own. Still willing to fight?" I wanted to give her a fair chance out. After all, we used to be friends, in a sense.

She growled and shook her head, grabbing two strangely shaped daggers with blades that surrounded her hands and a long, serrated blade on the edge. "RAGE!!"

There was a loud, boisterous laughter. "She's not alone, ya know?!?"

I noticed the brief look of relief in her face before spinning to the door.

"W-Who's there?!" Dustin asked nervously.

Eric raced into the hotel and past us to stand at Taylor's side. "Major come-back, ya know? Actually, I feel a lot better now, ya know! I feel invincible, ya know?!"

"How the...?! I thought we defeated you!!!" Dustin yelled angrily.

"Time to get serious." Eric smirked.

I sensed a GF and drew Pandemona from Taylor before casting double on me and Haste on me and Kapri. Kapri cast followed my lead, casting Double and then Hast on Dustin and Marah. Tori did the same, Casting Haste on her and Hunter.

Next, we cast Protect and Shell on our group before beginning our attack.

I cast Blind on Taylor and Eric, causing nearly all of their attacks to miss us. Then I cast Poison on Eric to constantly weaken him.

Kapri doublecast Firaga on him, while Marah and Dustin attacked with Thundagas on Taylor. Hunter shot Eric with some kind of stun bullet that made it so he couldn't move for a short while, and I focused an attack on Taylor.

Slashing her seven times, I jumped back and held my hand out as I summoned Leviathan.

A large watery portal opened in the sky, and a beam of water slowly began to pour out, sliding this way and that and curling upon itself as it entered the battle. Within a bright flash of light, a light blue dragon was seen floating above us. He roared loudly with his sharp beak, and Taylor and Eric were surrounded with thick bubbles of water. It raised them high off the ground before slamming them down and Leviathan disappeared.

Dustin summoned Shiva, who performed her Diamond Dust attack, and then doublecast sleep on Taylor and Eric.

"I...WITHDRAW! ERIC, GO!" Taylor commanded as she sank to the ground.

"Ouuuch! Not bad, ya know?" Eric smirked as Taylor cast a final Esuna on him, dispelling the Poison and Sleep we'd cast.

Jumping forward, he swung at Marah, and cut her deeply acros the stomach, causing her to scream in pain and pass out. Luckily, Dustin caught her and managed to pull out a phoeniz down to revive her.

Tori cast Curaga on her to heal her wounds, and Kapri frowned before whistling, and shooting Angelo on her crossobw at Eric.

I ran forward and slashed at him five times before jumping back, and Dustin raced forward, now that Marah could stand on her own, and punched him in the face before kicking him in the stomach.

"Taylor, I lost too, ya know..." Eric muttered as he sank to his knees.

"Are the two of you taking orders from the sorceress?" I demanded warily, keeping my blade out, just in case.

Taylor smirked as she drank a potion and shook her head. "NEGATIVE!"

"The sorceress has nothin' to do with us, ya know." Eric said with a shrug as he downed a hi-potion. "We're actin' on our own!"

Somehow, I had a hard time believing that the two of them thought up this plan on their own. "...Own plan...?"

"We're on Blake's side, ya know?!" Eric said as he stood up shakily and helped Taylor up.

I nodded slowly, putting my blade away. "That's up to you, but... Enough is enough! This isn't an internal Garden conflict!"

"We can't back out, ya know?!" He frowned deeply and shook his head.

Taylor seemed sad. "NEGATIVE!"

"Blake has a lot of followers, ya know?" he stated in a quieter tone. "But we're his only friends... We're a possé, ya know? The Galbadian soldiers are only listenin' to him 'cause they fear the sorceress. Without us, Blake wouldn't have a possé, ya know?"

"If you guys stand behind him so much... Tell fricken Blake to stop this nonsense!" Dustin shouted.

"AFFIRMATIVE!" Taylor sighed.

Eric shook his head. "We ain't no sell-outs! We're behind Blake all the way, ya know?!"

I nodded slowly. "Ok...understood." I said quietly. It kind of made me respect Blake, having friends this loyal. It was only sad that we were on opposite sides. "So, you want nothing to do with Garden, now? ...From now on, there's gonna be no holding back." I warned them fairly. _...I guess that's how it goes... That's what comrads are all about..._

"You're just gonna let them go, Shane?" Kapri asked me curiously.

I nodded silently, standing to the side so they could get past.

"Don't wanna...talk no more..." Eric muttered, looking heartbroken. "Kinda...hurts, ya know?"

"WIMP!" Taylor shouted, kicking him in the shin. "RUN!"

They ran off and left us alone in the hotel. Kapri sighed from beside me and I could see the look of sadness in her eyes from what she just witnessed.

"I feel kinda sad..." she said quietly.

I shrugged. "Friend or foe, it all comes down to circumstances... Thats how we ere raised. It's...nothing special." I said as I walked out of the hotel, noting immediately that the galbadians were withdrawing.

With a sigh, I closed my eyes and looked to the sky as I made my way back to Garden.

_Nothing special... Is that true? Then...what is this I'm feeling?_

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Ok, I don't know what to say...

I hope you like it.

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"Um... Can we, maybe, go to Trabia Garden?"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	31. Travelling the World

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : This chapter is going to be shorter. A lot of what I have here is unnecessary to the storyline, but I wanted to write some of this down. Basically, this stuff was optional, but gave a little information to what happened with some minor characters and such.

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(Garden Bridge)

Standing on the bridge, it was time to decide our next destination. FH and Balamb had both been pretty much liberated, so we had no idea where the Galbadians would go next. It would've been nice to relax for a while, but with our newest mission, we didn't have that luxury.

So, here I was, standing on the bridge with Xander, Cam and Tori, all three of whom were waiting on _my _next decision. I wasn't sure if I liked this new power or if it royally irritated me.

"Where are we going next?" Tori asked with a sigh.

The elevator behind me when down to the lower level and I turned to find Marah coming up to the bridge, an anxious look on her face. "Ummm... Hello, s'cuse me."

"What is it?" I asked softly, noticing how nervous she was. I felt really bad for her. Her Garden and home had been destroyed by Galbadian missiles, while we were able to save our Garden.

"Have you desided on a destination?"

Shaking my head, I sighed. "Still thinking." _But something tells me you have an idea..._

"Um... Can we, maybe, go to Trabia Garden?" she asked softly. "It's like...in the mountains, so maybe the sorceress will leave it alone... But maybe... You know?"

Barely holding back a frown, I recalled the volley of missiles we'd seen shot, just before I sent them out on the missile base mission. _But I thought it was destroyed by missiles..._ I saw the hopeful look in her eyes and suddenly knew what she was thinking. _Oh, I see... That's why. Of course she'd want to go and see it._ "I'll keep that in mind." I said absently.

To be honest, I was pretty curious myself.

She nodded and gave a small smile. "Thanks."

That being said, she took the elevator back down and I could hear the muffled sobs as she disappeared from our sight.

First, before we went anyplace else, I decided we should go back to Deling. Despite what happened before, Sorceress Miko wasn't there anymore, and I wanted to see if I could find some answers.

Calling Marah and Kapri to the bridge, I informed them of my plan and we made our way back to Dling City. I decided it was best to only take three people, that way, if we got captured again, there would still be some people free.

(Deling City)

When we parked the Garden outside the city, I was shocked at the peaceful dispaly. No one raised a hand to us, and everyone walked around calmly, like sorceress-assasination-attempts and presidential-murders happened all the time.

But what really worried me was the vague purple glow in everyone's eyes and their suddenl _love_ of the sorceress.

"Miko has promised a future. A future, even for a nobody like me." a man on the street said happily. "Miko has given divine protection. Protection, even for someone as plain as me!"

I blinked and noticed the freaked looks on the girls' faces. To be honest, I wasn't liking the feeling I was getting from this place, either.

"SeeDs don't stand a chance against the sorceress." A single Galbadian soldier said as he walked the streets of the dark town, completely ignoring the fact he was _talking to_ two SeeDs. "She'll squash them like bugs. Boy, am I glad she's not my enemy!"

A man walked by and jumped onto a railing, holding onto a lamp post to keep from falling in front of an on coming bus. "Long live Sorceress Miko!" he shouted.

Everyone who heard him turned and cheered, raising their hands.

"YEAAAHHHH!"

Ducking my head, I took Kapri's hand, knowing she was holding Marah's, and I led them beyond the nutcase who was dacing around happily.

_What the hell happened here?!_

"I felt a charge of energy at the parade. I know now that I must abide by her words." an older man whispered in awe as he walked along. His eyes flash purple as he walked but he didn't show any sign of noticing it.

I turned to the others with a frown. "Hypnosis." I muttered just loud enough for them to hear me. What other reason could there be? It seemed to be similar to what Blake was under. Some kind of magical hypnosis or mind control.

The man turned and laughed. "President Deling?" he asked, talking to us. "He was a good man on the outside, but basically...a loser!" he shouted before walking off.

"Sorceress Miko... Now that's what I call a real queen!" a young woman sighed as she walked by.

Frowning, I sighed in relief when we made our way to General Baliton's mansion. Heading inside, I noticed him leaning against his desk, looking out the window wearily. When he saw us, he nodded and shook his head.

"Please, take care of Kapri." he said with a small smile.

Frowning again, I nodded and folded my arms over my chest. "What can you tell me about the sorceress?" I asked calmly. _Any information could help._

He seemed to think about it a moment. "Galbadia is completely at the mercy of the sorceress. This country is now just a tool to her. Fearing the sorceress, the rest of the world will unite against Galbadia. I fear it's the Sorceress War all over again. Our enemy, Esthar, was also ruled by a sorceress... The same thing is now happening to Galbadia... How foolish of you, Deling..."

"And Esthar?" I prompted.

Closing his eyes for a moment, he looked at the floor and frowned. "The powerful nation to the east, Esthar is our worst threat. It's the country that took over the world with Sorceress Adel. Ever since the end of the war, Esthar has kept silent. No one knows what became of Sorceress Adel. Esthar has kept itself hidden and isolated. We were afraid of Esthar. We occupied other countries to build a force. Things have been going awry ever since then."

Since we'd gotten our answers in Deling, I decided we should look around Gaia a little more. The next place I instructed Xander to take us, was one I'd been wondering about since I saw it in the Dream World.

(WinHill)

This time, I let Marah stay back at the Garden and brought Dustin instead. She seemed ok with going, but I knew she needed a chance to relax and grieve for her Garden.

Entering the town, I noticed there were still monsters around, but the Galbadian soldiers were gone, as well as that the number of monsters was a lot less.

The first thing I noticed in particular, was a man sitting on a bench and looking sadly at the playing children. As I walked over to him, he began to talk, not looking at us.

"Originally, we were opposed to letting outsiders in our village. But I'm glad we hired those two men to hunt the monsters. Before, the children couldn't even play outside." he said idlly. "A while back, we let a wanderer named Tommy stay with us. Things were fine in the beginning, but he ended up stirring up a major disaster. Like I said, it was a while back, but the oldfolks are still really catious with outsiders."

_So, Tommy really was here._ I thought, then I frowned. _Of course he was._ They weren't dreams, but visions of the past, meaning it all really happened. He really fell for Kim and then got trapped somewhere in Centra. They really got badly wounded and separated. Kim married Merrick, and had Kapri...or, uh... Remembering what she said about being from another world, I shook my head, not wanting a massive headache by thinking about it.

I led the others into the large mansion and made our way upstairs. Finding a young woman there, I asked her if she knew anything about Tommy, and she just shrugged. Shaking her head, she went on, instead, about some missing vase.

"My husband is very upset with the fact that the vase is missing."

"Probably a ghost." I muttered sarcastically under my breath.

Unfortunately, she heard me and thought I was serious. "A ghost? Oh my, puh-lease!" she rolled her eyes, and then paused as an uncertain look crossed her face. "There's no such thing...is there?" Looking around, her eyes landed on a rusty-looking suit of armor and she frowned. "Come to think of it, I've noticed some strange things lately, like stuff in the house rearranging itself. Maybe an earthquake happened while we were asleep?"

_Earthquake? No, I think it'd wake you up, lady._ I thought with a roll of my eyes.

Turning back to the suit of armor, I noticed it had moved a little more forward than it was before and cautiously walked down the stairs, approaching it. Tapping it lightly on the shoulder, I jumped a foot back when it began to stagger forward, and winced when Kapri, who was right beside me, screamed in my ear.

Suddenly, a boot fell off and laid on the ground. That was followed by an arm. Then the other arm and the helmet fell off. As bits and bits of armor were left behind, we were eventually left with a body armor with tiny, taloned feet sticking out of it.

Walking over, I peered carefully into the top of it, only to jump back as a tiny baby chocobo jumped out, squeaked and ran off.

_Some ghost._ I thought with a raised eyebrow, once my heart was beating steadily again. Shaking my head and laughing softly, I turned to find Marah looking relieved and Kapri not looking too happy about being scared witless by a baby chocobo.

We headed out of the mansion quickly, not wanting to be blamed for the mess of armor bits on the floor, and made our way through town, talking to many people and learning more and more about Tommy and Katherine.

Heading to a flower shop, I looked around the flowers as the old lady that worked there sighed and greeted us warily.

"Do you like flowers?"

_They do tend to brighten up a place._ I thought to myself as I ran my hand through some white ones and nodded.

"Those white ones are really beautiful, aren't they? A woman named Katherine gave them to me. A pity she's no longer with us."

Frowning, I turned and looked at her in confusion. _No longer with us?_

"If only she'd stayed away from that outsider... Nobody understood flowers as well as Katherine." she said sadly.

We left and walked up the street, heading to a large house with an elderly couple sitting out front and a massive garden filled with flowers. Kapri rushed over immediately, looking so happy to see such a peacful sight.

"There used to be a flower shop in the town square." the old man said sadly as he gazed upon a few white flowers. "It was owned by a woman named Katherine. She lived there with a little girl named Kelly. Katherine was so good with flowers. She made white wreaths for our harvest festivals. We'll never see wreaths like that again. Kelly was so adorable, dancing around with a white wreath in her hair." He sighed and closed his eyes. "How long has it been since Katherine passed away? I wonder if Kelly's doing alright..."

There was the shock again. Last I'd seen, Katherine and Tommy were fairly happy together. What happened to her in such a short amount of time?

Heading to the town entrance, I notice two people dressed as SeeDs. One acted pomous and full of confidence and the other shook his head, telling us that they were really dropouts that came here and were hired as mercenaries.

"I heard there's some undercover figure helping the town out. I wonder if he's got some sentimental attachment to the place?"

Hearing that, I had no doubt it was Tommy.

Leaving WinHill, I felt it was time to head to Trabia. I could feel the curiosity getting the better of me and sighed as we headed back to Garden and I instructed Xander to take us to Trabia Garden in the snowy mountains to the north.

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There was more, but it didn't have anything really important and I got lazy. Hope you liked it anyways.

Awwww, (huggles a baby chocobo) They're so cuuuute!

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"A direct...hit?"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi.


	32. Trabia Memories, Part 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : Yay! Some explanations, finally! Actually... I think it's a LOT of explanations LOL, as well as the revealing of what I consider a little twist.

**JuseaPeterson** - When I asked what that machine reminded you of, I was thinking the previous chapter and the machine the other group fought at the missile base. Good guess though, in a sense, I think it is kind of a tank. LOL. I'm glad you like the fic, and yep, they're all reunited, now. Nope, Tommy isn't always there. He just helps out from time to time. The Sorceress War has happened before, but I wouldn't say it happens a lot.

I also want to apologize for spelling errors. Most of the time, I get into a groove, and I write well until I'm exhausted, so I only manage to catch some of my spelling mistakes. Then, I just keep forgetting to check the chapter over before I post it.

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(Trabia)

Stepping out of Garden, I shivered and huddled more into my leather jacket before taking one look at Kapri and sighing heavily. Even though the ground was covered in snow and ice, we didn't bother to dress warmer, as we junctioned Firaga magics to our weapons and Blizzaga magics to our armor. This protected us against Ice magic, and gave us the Fire element when attacking. Not to mention, having ice junctioned to our armor made it easier to deal with colder climates.

Still, it didn't mean we wouldn't feel the weather, just that we wouldn't feel it as bad.

Stripping off my jacket, I laid it over Kapri's shoulders as she shivered and walked past, heading straight for Trabia Garden.

As we rounded the snowy peaks, I stopped a moment and frowned before running up to the front gate. Even from the barred gate, with a thick net hanging over it, I could see that we were way too late.

"Looks pretty bad." I mused out loud, feeling my eyes narrow in concern for the likely thousands of students that had been staying there.

I heard the sound of footsteps rushing forward and turned to find Marah running up to us, a look of horror written across her face as she looked up at the clearly destroyed building that had once likely been very beautiful

"Marah!" I called, seeing her hunch over and shake.

"A direct...hit?" she asked shakily.

I turned and looked up, noting the shattered windows all over the building, as well as a huge chunk that was missing from the side of it. There was blood on the walls, along the net, and the once glowing and revolving rings around the top of it were dull and still.

There was no hope of it just being minor damage.

Dustin shook his head from beside me and punched the gate hard. "...Man, this pisses me off!" he growled.

Tori nodded from a little ways away, closing her eyes and looking to the ground as she folded her arms across her chest. "...This is terrible."

"...I'm going in." Marah said quietly, looking determined and refusing to be swayed.

I nodded slowly and moved out of the way. "Be careful." I said as she nodded and began climbing the netting, getting over the gate easily.

Following after her, I saw that there were a few students here and there, with an instructor or two. I walked along the path, and watched as Marah spoke to a girl with long raven hair before she nodded and ran off.

"Shane!"

Turning on my heel, I watched as the others ran up behind me.

"Have you seen Marah?" Hunter asked in worry.

I nodded. "Yeah and she ran off ahead."

Kapri looked around with a frown, keeping her crossbow at the ready just in case there was need for it. "I wonder if there are any monsters around." She didn't seem too worried, but I knew it was a valid point. "Come on, Shane. Let's hurry after her."

Hunter nodded and looked around, seeing the few people walking around and the ruined state of the former Garden. "I bet you she's in shock." he muttered quietly.

"To think that Balamb Garden might have ended up like this..." Tori shuddered and winced as her concerned blue eyes looked out over the people. "Thank godness we managed to avoid the missiles."

I walked on ahead, and found Marah standing next to the same brunette, by a fountain. The brunette wasn't in a uniform, but was clearly a student. "So, you've been taking care of Marah?" she asked me carefully, looking at me in an appraising manner.

_Might as well play along..._ Shrugging, I nodded a little. "Marah's been a big help." _Well, ok, that was the truth._

"Ahh..." Marah looked a little uncertain as she looked at me.

"Something wrong?" her friend asked with a smile.

"That's _so_ not like Shane!" Marah stated firmly, looking freaked out.

I shook my head. _...Whatever..._

"There should be a basketball court out back, wait for me there, 'k?" Marah asked softly. "I wanna catch up with my friends some more."

With a nod, I began to look around. I helped students tend to some injured and moved a few things a safe distance from the unstable parts. I even spoke to many people, and besides the injured and exhausted, they seemed to be in surprisingly good spirits.

I walked along under a broken down garage, where a few students laid on bedrolls, others huddled in a corner, and still others rifled through boxes. The snow fell lightly around them, and every once in a while, they would shiver, but otherwise, they were doing pretty good.

"Marah!"

Spinning around, I noticed as Marah spoke to a man in a bedroll, but spun and got up as two small children ran up to her, looking sad and scared.

"I'm sorry, Marah! Can you forgive me?" a litle boy asked as he wiped at his tears, smudging dirt on his face.

"What?" she asked clueless, bending down to wipe the dirt off his face. "Why? Why are you apologizing?"

"That teddy bear you gave me...I couldn't save it!" he cried as he burst into fresh tears.

The little girl nodded. "I can hear him crying... He's lonely!"

Marah shook her head and smiled as she stood up. "My teddy bear's a lot stronger than you think! As long as you're all safe, Mr. Bear's happy!" She paused and acted like she was hearing something. "Heeey! I can hear him! Mr. Bear's watching over you secretly. So don't be naughty or sad all the time! Just remember, Mr. Bear is watching over you!" she said as she looked at them and ruffled the little boy's hair.

I made my way to the basketball court, bypassing a ball on the ground as I joined the group.

"We're leaving as soon as Marah comes back." I informed everyone. "We're on standby 'til then." Frowning, I looked around. _Doesn't seem like the enemy invaded this Garden yet... Maybe they're waiting for something, or they're on their way... Where's the sorceress? We have to find her and..._ Shaking my head, I broke myself out of my thoughts, refusing to think about it.

After a few moments, Marah walked into the court sadly, and bent to pick up the basketball. "Sorry to keep you all waiting! Thanks so much for coming all the way out here, guys."

Everyone nodded and smiled. Hunter tipped his hat. "Cheer up, hey?"

"Thanks." she said again. "Take me with you when you fight the sorceress, ok? I wanna get even! I wanna get revenge!" she said angrily.

Kapri bit her lip before standing up from the rock she was leaning against and raising her hand nervously. "Um... Do we...have to fight? Isn't there another way? Y'know, to avoid any bloodshed?"

_Why is she askking that all of a sudden?_

Dustin took a step back and looked torn between being shock and angry, so he settled for both. "Yo?! What the...?! What are you sayin' all of a sudden?!" he demanded in confusion.

"Maybe someone really smart can come up with a way, so we wouldn't have to fight anymore." Her eyes were pleading, and she almost looked scared.

I frowned in confusion and looked to the ground. In a sense, I agreed with her, but I also knew better. _What are you getting at...? If someone can come up with something, that'd be great... But no one's going to do anything... They're all scared, uneasy. All they do is complain. They just pretend to be thinking. They critisize others, but in the end, they can't so anything, either. _Staring at her, I watched as she looked down sadly. _Kapri, why all this, all of a sudden? What do you expect from me? I grew up in Garden. I'm a SeeD. Do you understand?_

"Shane?" She looked uncertain and pained. "You have to voice your feelings or I won't understand."

"You were...part of a resistence group in Timber, right?" I questioned carefully. "Unlike others who were all talk, you took your weapons and fought... And now you're saying all this? What happened to you?" Ok, not the most tactful, but it got the point across.

She crouched down on the ground and faced it, her voice soft and shaky as she spoke. "I guess...I'm getting scared. Sometimes...when I'm with all of you... I...feel like we're on the same wavelength...you know? But when the battles start happening, it's different. Everyone's tempo seems to pick up, and... I get left behind."

Thinking about it, I figured I understood. She felt helpless alone, but with us, she felt like she could make a difference. And whenever the battles began, she felt alone, helpless.

"I try to catch up, but it's no use... How far is everyone going? I can't hear anyone..."

Marah looked really sad, Tori looked understanding. Strangely, Hunter looked knowing, and Dustin looked lost.

"Once I catch up, I wonder... Is everyone safe? Will they welcome me with open arms?"

My eyes widened when her hidden insecurity came out. Over the time we'd spent together, I noticed she seemed afraid of not being accepted, but she never voiced it. She always seemed afraid we'd reject her, push her away.

"...Is everyone ok? Will we all make it back, together? When I start thinking like that..." she trailed off, refusing to look up from the ground or stand up straight.

"Kapri." Hunter walked forward and sighed. "I understand. Someone might not be there." He shot me a glance as he raised an eyebrow, when he said that, before turning back to her. "Someone you love might disappear before your very eyes. It's tough when you live your life thinking that way. But...that's why I fight..."

He bent down and picked up the basketball.

"When I was a little kid... About 4 years old, or so... I was in an orphanage..." He shot the ball into the net and watched as it sunk right through, his gaze showing he was lost in thought.

**Hunter's Flashback**

"Plenty of kids, all with no parents. It was around the end of the Sorceress War... So I guess it couldn't be helped. Anyway, that's where I was."

A little boy with dirty blone hair and blue eyes ran into a room, followed by several other children.

The room was small. Stone walls and a large window that looked out over a large ocean and barren lands. Four beds lined the walls, two on each, and a little tables between each one. The matresses and sheets were fairly clean, but the room itself looked like it had been long neglected.

The little boy scratched his head before shaking it and running out a different door, once again, followed by the children.

"And out of all these kids, one little girl was very special to me."

A little girl with long brown hair ran into the room, tripping over her feet and falling down. Making a face, she got back up and brushed off her yellow leggings before turning to the little blonde boy who was suddenly back in the room again.

"Hey, Huntie, wanna play?" she asked with a big smile.

"I really liked this girl and it always made me so happy when she'd talk to me."

The little boy tilted his head and blushed. "Mar, what'cha playin'?" he asked nervously.

She giggled. "WAR!"

The two children ran out of the room laughing.

**End Hunter's Flashback**

"Was this orphanage...a stone house?" Marah asked quietly, her forehead creased in confusion as she seemed to struggle to recall it.

He nodded and smiled. "You guessed it."

"An old house...made of stone?" Tori questioned, a sudden recognizing look crossing her face. "...By the ocean?"

"You guessed it..." he repeated. "I knew it right away, when we first met!"

Marah scowled as tears filled her eyes. "Heeey! Why didn't you tell us?"

"Yes, why didn't you?" Tori echoed, the same pained look crossing her face.

**Flashback**

"'Cause you both seemed to have forgotten. It kinda sucked that I was the only onw who remembered."

The two little girls entered the room, giggling.

"Spunky little Mar, and bossy little Tori."

"That is just soooo weird." Marah muttered as she began to recall it as well.

Tori's eyes widened. "Huh?"

A little brunette boy with fair skin ran into the room panting, and stood between two beds. He looked around nervously and stood there, his little fist tugging on his yellow shirt.

"Hey, do you guys remember setting off fireworks?" Dustin asked curiously.

"That was..." Hunter began, only to be cut off as his child-like version ran into the room.

"This way!"

The kids ran out of the room, and Shane ignored the others as he thought to himself.

(Out back of the orphanage)

Out back, under the leaky roof, stood the little boy in the red t-shirt. He cried as he looked around. "Sis...Kell..."

(Back in the orphanage)

"Matwyn! Sis isn't here! Where's sis?!" the little boy ran through the room in a panic.

The little boy looked around the empty room sadly. "Sis... Where'd yoo go? Yoo don't like me no more?" he whispered to himself.

_What a shameful sight._ the adult version of Shane sighed as he remembered how weak he was back then.

(Beach by the orphanage)

"How about this?" little Hunter asked as he piled some small fireworks on the sand in the middle of the group.

The beach stretched on for miles in one direction, and ended at a high cliff in the other. The sand was a dark, murky yellow, and the clear blue ocean water lapped gently against the shore. The steps leading up to the orphanage were lined with flowers, thought other than that, the land was barren with a few whisps of brown, dried grass.

Marah jumped and clapped excitedly. "YEAHHH!"

The adult Tori's eyes widened. "We _did_ set off fireworks!"

The sky darkened as the daytime turned into night, and the children stood in a circle around a fire. Little Dustin came running down the long flight of stairs, staring at the others with fear.

"Kids aren't suppost'a play with fire!" the little version of him whined to the others. He stood by them and shook his head. "I'm tellin' on yoo!!!"

A little boy with dark skin and dark hair turned to him and smirked. "Cry-bab-by-Dus-tin!" he taunted. "Go back to bed!!!"

"If I remember this, doesn't that mean I was there, too?" Dustin asked curiously.

"...We all got in _big_ trouble." Tori remembered with a wince.

"But, what about my parents in Balamb?" Dustin continued.

(Orphanage Bedroom)

"The Brooks' in Balamb must've adopted you." Tori answered him simply.

"Yep, that's probably it." Hunter agreed.

"I...was there..." Dustin seemed in shock.

"Yoooooo! Come on! Stop it! Matwyn, help!!" little Dustin howled.

The little boy from before, with the dark skin, ran into the room and grinned at Dustin who was in tears. "CRY-BA-BY-DUS-TIN!!!" he taunted loudly as he made a face. He wore a simply navy t-shirt and grey pants.

"Wait..." Marah seemed to be recalling the same person. "Who's THAT?!"

"NYA-NA-NA!" the boy continued to taunt.

"Oh my god!" Tori cried in shock as she remembered.

Dustin sighed. "Blake... My archenemy."

"WOW! He was there, too?!" Marah cried in shock.

Hunter laughed a little. "Well...?"

**End Flashback**

Hunter nodded at all of us. "Blake was there, too. With the exception of Kapri, we were all there."

Frowning a little, I looked at Kapri who looked confused and felt a little bad. The only reason she hadn't been there, was that she wasn't from this world, and this world's Kapri's father was still alive.

"Heeeeey!" Marah spun to me with her kaw wide open. "That means..."

I was leaning against a rock, but stood up and nodded slowly, not really wanting to relive this, but realizing I didn't have a choice. "Yeah...I was there, too."

**Flashback**

"I..."

The same little boy looked up to the sky sadly, tears streaming down his face as he felt his world fall apart. First his parents, and now 'Sis'. He thought everyone kept leaving him behind and began to be afraid to accept people into his life, constantly fearing losing them in the end and being hurt.

"...Sis..."

**End Flashback**

"I was always waiting for 'sis' to come back." I admitted softly.

**Flashback**

"I'm...all alone."

The little boy was getting wet, but not soaked, as he stood below the leaky roof, watching the rain fall to the ground, but not really seeing it as his vision blurred from the tears.

"But I'm doing my best... I'll be ok without you, sis. I'll be able to take care of myself."

**End Flashback**

_I didn't turn out 'ok' at all..._ I thought darkly. Frowning, I tried to piece it together. "Sis...Kell... Kelly. So Kelly was Sis. Tori, Marah, Dustin, Hunter, Blake, Kelly and myself... Yeah... I'm not sure what the meaning behind all of this is, but we were definitely together."

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So, what do you think? I realize the flashbacks might be confusion, but I didn't know how else to write them.

And this isn't it for the revelations. LOL.

Hope you like it.

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"Hey... Do you all remember...?"

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Ok the actual quote had something else in it, but for the purpose of being a pain and suspence, I didn't want to mention it just yet. Don't worry, you'll find out what I'm talking aobut next chapter. LOL.

R+R please!

Thank you.

Tenshi


	33. Trabia Memories, Part 2

**Disclaimer** : I Don't own anything.

**Note** : On one note... I'm exhausted, so sorry for any spelling/grammar mistakes. On another, this will be a shorter chapter. I thought there was more to write for it, but apparently not. I ended it here, because the scene ends here and the next chapter has nothing to do with being in Trabia.

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(Not so much a flashback, as the scene changed in the game. It's still them and they're still in Trabia, but right now, they're all reminicing and the scene is the sandy beach by the orphanage.)

(Beach)

"You mean Sis is Kelly?" Dustin asked in confusion.

Marah nodded a little. "She's...the one who takes us back to Tommy's period."

Frowning, I recalled our meeting in Balamb Garden. "...She said she wanted to change the past. I don't know why..."

"There can be only one reason for that." Tori pointed out with a worried frown.

"She must not be happy with the present." Marah concluded.

Dustin nodded in determination. "If that's the case, then I'm definitely up for helpin' her! She's part of our orphanage gang!"

"You didn't even remember who she was!" Marah accused with a scowl.

"Hey, Marah..." Hunter raised an eyebrow. "That goes for you, too." he pointed out easily. "Hmm, so sis was Kelly, huh? Everyone was fond of sis, but you Shane, you kept hogging her all to yourself." he said with a grin.

"You sure seem to have a good memory." I stated pointedly. "...This is really strange. I don't think I was adopted because of the way I am."

"Probably the same with Blake, too. You two must've been at the Garden by the age of 5 or so." Hunter said as he seemed to really think about it.

I shrugged. "Even so, he's never mentioned anything about being at an orphanage. And nothing about this has ever crossed my mind when I saw him, either. Don't you find that odd?" I certainly did. We both grew up at the same orphanage. Surely one of us must've remembered _something_!

Marah nodded with wide eyes. "That IS odd! In my case, I had loads and loads of fun after going to Trabia. That's probably why I forgot about my childhood. That's what I think." she frowned in confusion. "But I don't know about you guys. It's so odd that you would forget!"

I glanced briefly at Kapri who looked completely wrapped up in what we were talking about, as well as looking extremely comfortable in my coat. I wondered if I'd have to pry it away from her later, to get it back.

"I...remember." Tori seemed uncertain for a moment before nodding. "Yes, I remember now. Things didn't work out at my new home, so I came to Garden at the age of 10. That was when I first noticed Blake and Shane. They were always fighting."

I grinned at this, I couldn't help it. "Yeah... And Tori always had to break us up."

"Yes!" she jumped and grinned, pointing at me. "That's right! Blake was a kid that always needed to be at the center of attention. But Shane always used to ignore him... But eventually, they would end up fighting... Shane could've easily walked away from it, but always took up the challenge." She giggled a bit. "He should've just ignored him, but Shane, all that time, he'd say... 'I gotta do my best by myself. Or else I won't be able to see sis.'"

I looked at the ground as I recalled that. It didn't seem like such a great reason now, come to think of it.

"I guess I was trying to take sis...I mean, Kelly's place." she continued after a moment, sounding embarrassed. "I tried, but to no avail... That's probably it! Even after becoming an instructor, I couldn't stop thinking about Shane." She blushed deeply and ducked her head.

I felt my face heat up and raised an eyebrow. Looking out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Kapri's face darken and her eyes seemed to hint at pain, but she remained silent and kept a mask in place. Feeling confused, I figured I'd better just forget about it for now.

"I thought it was...love. I had to hide my feelings because I was an instructor, but I've come to realize it wasn't. It was my childhood feelings as a big sister that lingered... Oh, well..." Turning away, she walked a little ways away from the group.

"Hmm...I can't...remember." Marah scrunched up her face and sighed. "The orphanage was located... Awww! I can't remember!"

Tori suddenly spun around and ran back over to us. "Hey! It must be the same for Blake! I'm sure Blake has forgotten his childhood, too! But whenever he sees Shane, his inner feelings start to boil and..."

"Is that why he's always pickin' fights with Shane?" Dustin asked as his eyes lit up.

"...Why is it that we forgot?" I questioned a little angrily. "We grew up together as kids... How is it possible we forgot?"

(Orphanage Bedroom)

Hunter got into a theory that it was because of the GFs. It kind of made sense. I mean, there was a rumor going around that the possible side effect was memory loss, but the way he made it sound... It was as if they were somehow controlling us.

Tori didn't want to believe it, Dustin believed it right away, and so did Marah.

Me? I didn't buy it, but what other reason was there? There was just so much I didn't understand.

"Hey... Do you all remember Matron?" Tori's eyes lit up as another memory hit her.

Dustin nodded as his own face scrunched up and he seemed to try to remember. "She was always wearin' black..."

_Matron... Dressed in black..._

"Let's see..." MArah struggled to recall.

A woman who must've been in her late 20's early 30's entered the room. She wore a long black dress with long sleeves that fell to her ankles with black slip on shoes under it. She had long black hair that came to her hips, and deep chocolate eyes, with distinct asian features.

"I see a resemblance..." Dustin frowned deeply in confusion. "Matron...they look alike..."

"Wait..." Marah's face turned panicked. "I just pictured her face, and..."

"Very kind..." Tori muttered with her eyes closed. "Long black hair... Yes, I really admired her."

Hunter shook his head quickly. "Look alike? Naw, that's not it. Matron's name is Miko Watanabi. Matron IS Sorceress Miko." he mused out loud, pain crossing his face as he explained that.

"Matron..." Marah's face went ghostly pale and she began to shake. "Sorceress Miko..."

Tori's eyes shot open wide and she looked like she was having trouble comprehending what was being said. "Why is Matron...?"

(Back in the Basketball Court)

"Why?" Hunter echoed. He sighed and shook his head. "You're wonderin' why she'd take over a country or fire missiles at Garden? We probably wouldn't be able to conprehend it, even if we talked about it." he said sadly.

I nodded slowly, thought the curiosity ws eating at me. _You're probably right._

"...Hear me out." He began to pace. "SeeD and Garden are all Matron's idea, right? I'm not a SeeD but I share the same feelings as all of you. SeeDs are supposed to fight the sorceress, right?"

_This is strange._ I thought to myself. _That's right... It was when I was being tortured by Blake. He wanted to know what SeeD was... Matron should know. But Matron is Sorceress Miko, there's no denying that. It doesn't make sense that she wouldn't know. What does it all mean?_

"Shane, are you listening?"

Raising an eyebrow, I stared at Hunter as he nodded and turned to the others.

"So like, this is what I wanted to say. Let's see... Oh, yeah. I understand what Kapri's sayin'. I understand, but I'm still gonna fight. I want to stay true to everything I've stood for. I'm sure it's the same for everyone. That's why I thought it would be best if everyone knew we'd be facing Matron. You've all heard this before... How life has infinite possibilities. I don't believe that one bit. There weren't many paths for me to chose. Sometimes, there would only be one."

I nodded slowly. It made a lot of sense.

"From the limited possibilities I faced, the choices I made brought me this far. That's why I value the path I chose. I want to hold true to the path that _had_ to be taken. I know our opponent is Matron, whom we all love very much. We might lose something very important, our memories of the past, on account of the GF... But I don't mind. It's not like i drifted here on the tides of fate. I'm here because I chose to be here. And more importantly..."

He looked at all of us. "We all grew up together. But due to various circumstances, we were all separated. As a kid, you couldn't really go out on your own. There was no other paths to take... All I did was just cry. But..."

Pausing, he sighed and nodded. "But... Somehow, we're all together, again. Just like old times, though a lot's changed. We're not kids anymore... We're strong enough to take care of ourselves... Make our own decisions... We're confronting a big one right now...

Do we fight Matron, or not?

I say we fight... Shoot for a common goal." He grinned weakly. "Hey, at least it'll keep us together a little while longer."

Dustin nodded after a moment and looked up with a pained yet determined look. "...Yeah. Let's do it. We can't run from her for the rest of our lives."

"It's just such a bummer!" Marah whined. "I can't believe we have to fight Matron!"

"I know, but Dustin's right." Tori agreed. "We can't run from her forever."

I nodded before turning to Kapri, who was kneeling on the snowy ground, staring at the ground, with my jacket around her shoulders. "Kapri... It's up to you..." I said softly, getting her attention. "We're gonna fight... I think it's the only way we can move on with our lives. If it makes any sense at all, come with us. I'm sure that's what everyone wants." I said gently.

"Yo, you wanna check out Miko's Orphanage?" Dustin asked quietly.

Hunter shrugged. "We might find a clue."

"Clue? You mean to why Matron turned out like this?" Tori asked in a whisper.

_It probably has something to do with something that happened in the past. But the past is the past...It's over, done with. _"Despite what we find, it's not going to change the present, but... I wanna see too. I don't know what we'll find, but let's head for Miko's House."

Everyone began to walk off, once again, leaving me alone with Kapri. She had her back to me but as I walked closer, slowly turned around with a timid smile on her face. "I guess that's it. We're fighting." She shook her head. "You guys are fearless."

_Fearless? I don't think that's quite right. If you think too hard, you become lost... I think that's what everyone's afraid of. _"I wish... I wish we didn't have to fight, either." I admitted softly.

She gave me a soft smile before throwing me my coat and rushing off after the others. Taking the warm coat, I felt myself shiver, but not from the cold. I put it back on before running after them and forcing myself to ignore the smell of jasmine that lingered around me.

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That's the twist I was talkin' about. Matron is Miko. Their enemy used to be their loving guardian.

Hope you like it. I'm going to go pass out for the night, now. LOL.

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"The sorceress is with them, huh? So this is going to be the final battle?"

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No, despite the quot, I still have a lot of chapters to go. LOL. Not the end just yet.

R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi.


	34. Final Showdown, G Garden

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : Yeah, the dream sequences are fairly confusing. Sorry. I couldn't think of how better to describe them.

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(Balamb Garden Bridge, Normal POV)

It took the group a while of sailing around blindly before anyone remembered roughly where the orphanage was. And even then, all they knew was that it was near the Centra ruins.

So, from Trabia Garden, they'd sailed south until they came to dark, barren lands all around them. They passed the formidable ruins that supposedly held the GFs Odin and King Tonberry, and to a small island with a tiny house, small forest nearby, and a large red Garden in front of it.

"Shane, take a look." Xander called, looking through a set of binoculars. Turning to their new Commander, he held them out for Shane to take, and watched as the leader looked through them and frowned deeply.

_Damn!_ Shane thought with a mental groan.

"What do you think?" the pilot asked nervously.

Shrugging, Shane sighed and shook his head. _Chances are, if we've seen them, they've seen us. There's no getting around it, this time._ This really wasn't what he was looking forward to, but there didn't seem to be any other choice now. "The battle is inevitable." he finally said.

"The sorceress is with them, huh?" he asked with a shudder. Shane nodded and Xander sighed. "So this is going to be the final battle?"

"I hope so." Shane admitted truthfully. _But something tells me it isn't going to be that easy._ With a sigh, he looked at the mic he was handed and pondered. _What should I do first? I have to give orders to everybody. It's my duty. I have to try and keep it simple, or I'll only end up confusing the students. What should I say?!_ The possibilities were endless. _Come on! Think! _

They drew closer to the enemy Garden and paused as Xander waited for the order to move ahead.

_There's no time!_ Shane tugged his hair and sighed, deciding to wing it. Flipping the switch, he closed his eyes.

"This is Shane speaking. This is an emergency, so listen carefully. We're going into battle against Galbadia Garden. As you may all know, Blake is with them. I plan to settle everything, once and for all, with this battle. The Garden will proceed straight ahead, set the speed to 50 percent, in case we need to take evasive maneuvers. 1st and 2nd class sabers, assemble in the parking lot. Those with MG ranks 3 or above, head to the second floor deck and wait for instructions, make sure to warm up."

Looking thoughtfully at the enemy Garden, Shane had no doubt they, too, were preparing for battle. "The enemy will probably come aboard. We must concentrate our forces at the front gate and the Quad. If your student ID number is even, report to the Quad, if it's odd, report to the front gate. Tori, Dustin and Marah, please report to the bridge." _I don't think including Kapri would be a good idea after her little speech in Trabia. _"Those of you with student ID numbers ending in 8, take care of the junior classmen."

With a sigh, he flipped the switch again and placed the mic down carefully.

"I think that was a little unnecessary. People tend to get a bit wild in battle." Xander informed Shane with a raised eyebrow. "They just need to hear what's necessary."

"Hey, hey, hey!" came Hunter's voice from the office below the bridge. "What's up? I'm not invited?"

Nodding to Xander, Shane took the elevator to the floor below and noticed that Tori, Marah and Hunter were there, waiting for him. But... Where was Dustin? And why wasn't Kapri standing here, giving him an earful for not calling her?

"I thought I was part of the gang." Hunter stated with an insulted pout.

Shane shrugged. _...Whatever..._ "Sorry about that." he said simply.

Shaking his head, Hunter sighed. "Man, why am I always the odd man out?" he whined to himself.

"What do you want us to do?" Tori asked grimly.

Looking at her, Shane changed his glance to the bridge above. "I want you guys to help me lead the others. When Dustin gets here, we'll divide into two teams."

Marah's eyes went wide and she looked around quickly. "Dustin?" she asked nervously, placing her hand on her chin in thought. "Umm, I think he's taking a nap. Yeah, he said he hasn't slept all day."

"What...?" Tori looked at her in confusion before her own eyes widened and she turned to Shane and nodded quickly. "Oh, yeah."

"What're you guys talking about?" their leader demanded in confusion.

Tori began to grin a little and shrugged. "Nothing. It's our little secret."

_...What's he doing?!_ Shane was certain it wasn't just 'taking a nap' like Marah suggested. Their behavior was much too suspicious. _We don't have any time!_ The battle was about to begin, and Dustin was off, fooling around somewhere, doing god-knows-what! "I'm going to the Quad!" he stated with a glare at the girls. "Who's coming with me.

Before they could answer, Shane groaned and raised his hand, stalling their words. "Never mind. Marah, go find Dustin and work together to lead the team at the front gate."

She nodded and Shane sighed. Turning to the others, he nodded. "Alright, let's go."

"Wait!"

Turning to Marah, he raised an eyebrow and waited for her to continue.

"What about Kapri?"

Blinking or a moment, he wasn't sure about involving her, but to be honest, he didn't see a way to avoid it. Pursing his lips, he figured that Marah would likely run into her before him. "You take care of her."

Leaving the office, Shane made his way to the 2nd Floor and spotted a group of SeeDs milling around in confusion. _I guess Xander was right._ Walking up to them, he remained silent as they all stood at attention and saluted. "What are you doing? What's your status?"

One student replied right away. "Indirect Magics Operative, sir!"

"You're a first class MG. Report to the deck immediately!" he ordered calmly.

"Yes, sir!" the student rushed off.

Turning to three more, he raised an eyebrow. "What about you?"

One man saluted and stood up straighter. "Fire Platoon, level 3 trainee, sir!"

The other nodded. "Fire Platoon, level 1, sir!"

The girl in the group looked almost afraid. "Rescue Team A, medic, sir!

Pointing to the two men, Shane sighed. "You two head for the deck. Medic, report to the defense team!"

"Yes, sir!" they chorused before taking off.

(Quad)

It took a little while to travel all over the Garden and make sure everyone was ready, but once that was done, Shane ran to the Quad, and was shocked to find Dustin ordering some SeeDs around, fully awake.

"You guys are over there. Backup the advance guards. Alright, listen up! This is the big one, guys! We gotta win, no matter what!" he ordered sternly. As the SeeDs ran off, he turned and jumped a little to see Shane, Hunter and Tori behind him before nervously scratching the back of his head. "S'up Shane? I got this place covered!"

Raising an eyebrow, Shane rossed his arms over his chest. _So much for being asleep._ "I thought you were sleeping..." He stated suspiciously.

Looking blank for a moment, his eyes soon widened and he laughed nervously. "Oh...! Yeah, y-your announcement woke me up. My student ID is even, si I'm supposed to be here, right?" Pausing, he seemed to think about something before walking a little ways away and motioning for him to follow him. "Yo, Shane, come here for a sec."

Shane walked over and waited patiently for him to continue.

"It's about your ring."

Looking to his hand, he noted his Griever ring on his right hand, index finger. "What about it?" he asked warily.

"This might not be the time, but..." he trailed off as he looked uncertain.

Rolling his eyes, Shane tapped his foot, showing his impatience. _What is it...?_

"Give me your ring, will ya?" he just blurted out. "I just wanna borrow it for a little while. I won't lose it or anything. C'mon, what do you say?"

His gaze transferred to the ring he was wearing. "Why do you need it?"

"Uh, I can't tell you that." he admitted with a blush. "C'mon, just give it to me. You can trust me." he pleaded.

_What the hell...?!_ Shane frowned as he stared uncertainly at the ring he'd had for so long. _I like this ring._ Looking at Dustin, he saw the earnest stare and sighed. _I...guess it's alright if he just wants to borrow it..._ Fiddling with the ring, it took some prying to get it off his finger, and hesitantly, he handed it to the brunette martial artist. "_Don't_ lose it!"

"YEAH! THANKS MAN!" Dustin cried happily, gingerly taking the ring and holding it tightly. "I didn't think you were gonna give it to me. Kapri's gonna be so happy!"

_Huh?_ "Kapri?" Shane asked hesitantly. _What's she want with my ring?_

Shaking his head, Dustin forced a big grin. "Alright, Shane! Leave this place to me!"

Suddenly, Marah and Kapri came running up, out of breath and Marah glared a little at Dustin.

"Geez...there you are!"

Kapri looked uncertain as she checked to make sure her crossbow was secure and then looked at Shane sincerely. "Guys, I'm gonna fight, too. I don't wanna just hide." she said firmly. "I know I can fight. I want to fight along side everyone."

Frowning, Dustin looked around the packed Quad and sighed. "I hope this is the last time we have to fight in our home."

"...Take care of yourself." Shane said to the others, mostly directing his statement to Kapri.

The PA beeped, and Xander's worried voice carried through loudly. "Shane! Get back to the bridge immediately!"

Turning to Dustin, Shane sighed and shook his head. "Dustin, I'm counting on you! Good luck, everyone!" he called to the entire group of SeeDs and trainees.

Running off, Shane left the others to their work and made his way to the bridge with Hunter and Tori in tow.

(Bridge)

"Look!" Xander called, tossing Shane the binoculars as soon as he stepped foot on the bridge.

Doing so, Shane noticed right away the sudden burst of movement on Galbadia Garden. Zooming in, he watched as hundreds of soldiers rushed around, some mounting bikes that were set on ramps to allow them a massive jump. And amidst them...

Blake stood in the middle of the deck, grinning at them as he held his gunblade resting against his shoulder.

Pulling the binoculars away from his face, Shane frowned as he noticed Galbadia Garden heading their way and sighed, knowing the final battle with Sorceress Miko was almost upon them.

"Blake is in charge over there." Xander informed him gravely. "They're heading right for us!"

Nodding, Shane's eyes narrowed at the approaching Garden. "Just keep going."

He looked through the binoculars again and watched helplessly as the bikes rode up the ramps, flying high into the air and towards Balamb Garden. The bikes released dozens of missiles which hit and minorly wounded the Garden, before they landed, some on the decks and others craching through windows and into rooms.

"We're gonna crash!"

"Go right!" Shane ordered quickly, staggering as Xander pushed the steering mechanism on the right, hard.

The ship lurched to the right, but it was too late, and with a resounding crash, the Garden's collided. The rings around the bases of the Gardens clashed and rolled off of each other, ausing both Gardens to shudder as they scraped by each other.

(Quad, Kapri's POV)

It was sheer panic.

So many SeeDs and students rushing around, engaging any bike-riding Galbadians that approached. There was a massive shudder through the Garden, as well as what sounded like an explosion, and we all staggered to try and keep our balance.

Hearing something coming by from the ledge of the Quad, I spun to watch in shock as the red armored body of Galbadia Garden brushed past us, metal squealing on metal an the high pitched ripping sound, causing me to wince as I covered my ears.

"The enemy's right beside us! Quad team! Be careful!" Shane's voice called over the PA.

With a frown, I turned back to Dustin, being extremely scared for being right here at the moment. I really just wanted to be on Shane's team, but he sent me here. Why? I didn't know, but I felt something really wasn't right.

"Go straight ahead, to the left!" Dustin ordered grimly. "We gotta stop them from comin' in!"

Running towards the ledge more, we fought some soldiers and could easily tell Dustin was getting worked up. "C'mon, c'mon! They're dead ahead!" Then, he paused. "///Oh yeah!" Turning to me, he dug into his pocket and pulled out a ring with the image of a lion engraved into it. "Here! I got it from Shane. Like I said, I'll make you one just like it. 'Til then, hold on to it for me, will ya?" he stated with a grin, handing me the ring.

Taking it carefully, I held it to my chest with both hands and nodded to him gratefully. "What did you say to him?" I asked quietly. It seemed really embarrassing for me to ask Shane if I could get a copy made of his ring, but speaking to Dustin about it, was I surprised to find he was good with metal engraving, so he insisted he'd take care of it.

Slipping the necklace off, I placed the ring beside the other one on the chain, wincing when I realized it was Blake's, and bit my lip as I put the necklace back on. Part of me wanted to remove the other ring, but another part of me argued that it should stay. With such chaos going on at the moment, I didn't have time to think about it, so I just left it.

Shrugging, Dustin waved a hand dismissively. "I just told him to hand it over."

_Unlikely. Shane wouldn't just 'hand it over' if ordered._ I thought dryly. "It looks cool...but it's too big." I muttered out loud.

"Guys! C'mon!" Marah called from just ahead.

We were standing really close to the ledge when the Garden rocked violently again, and I staggered away from Dustin. He moved farther away from the ledge, but I staggered backwards, closer to it. Falling to my knees, I noticed with horror as the ground began to break apart right in front of me. _No..._ Standing up quikly, I tried to walk forward, bu the ledge I stood on gave away and I was seen sliding down the soil on the side of Garden.

I'd hit my arm pretty hard on a ledge, and I felt a sharp pain run through it, but luckily, I managed to catch on to a small ledge of dirt that was sticking out, and dangled there, helplessly, right above the rotating rings at the bottom of the Garden.

Looking down, I gasped at how far the ground was, and watched as a large rock fell, hitting the ring and shattering into tiny pieces of gravel. _No, no, NO!_ My mind repeated in a frenzy. _It _can't_ end like this!_

I changed my gaze to above me, far above me, and saw Dustin reaching down as far as he could, terror written across his face, and Marah holding onto his waist with the same expression. _Help... Help me!_

"DAMMIT! I CAN'T REACH HER!" Dustin screamed loudly as he pounded his fist into the ground and backed away.

"Don't go..." I whispered, feeling pain in my chest as I hung onto the little ledge with all my might. Shifting a little, the pain was relived, but some of the dirt gave way, and I held my breath, fearing that moving was going to send me to my death. When the ledge held, I sighed and closed my eyes. _Shane, please...help me..._ I mentally pleaded.

(Quad, Normal POV)

"We gotta pull her up somehow!" Marah cried as Dustin walked through the Quad, furiously looking around for something, anything to use to help her.

Running back to the ledge, Dustin leaned down. "KAPRI! HOLD ON! WE'RE GONNA BE RIGHT BACK!" he yelled down before standing and nodding to Marah, taking off out of the Quad as they sought out help.

(Main Hall, Shane's POV)

Exiting the bridge, I decided to run around and see what I could do to help. Sitting around helplessly wasn't my style. Cam ran off ahead of me, to check some troops and I checked the wounded, healing some and giving others items to help heal them.

I made my way to the east side of the hall, bypassing the Training Center and smirking to myself. We'd left that place unguarded because with the monsters inside, they would take care of the soldiers themselves.

"Shane! They're coming in from the front gate!" Cam called over the PA.

_I guess he made his way back to the bridge._ I thought with a raised eyebrow as I ran to the front gate. Seeing that most of the main troops were down, I frowned and dispatched a small squadron of Galbadian soldiers before grabbing a SeeD by the arm. "Call for backup!" I ordered, running to a group of injured students and healing them up the best I could.

"Shane!"

Turning my head, I groaned as Dustin and Marah ran up to me. _What now...?!_ Then, I frowned. _Where's Kapri...?_

Dustin looked incredibly guilty and Marah looked terrified. "Kapri's in trouble!" Dustin cried.

Marah nodded quickly, panting from the run. "Yeah, she's gonna fall of Garden!!:

Fall of Garden? How was that even possible? The meaning of their words hit me and I started, standing up slowly and staring at them with wide eyes. _...Damn!!_

"Shane, listen up!" Xander's voice called from the bridge. "The enemy is attacking the classroom. The junior classmen are there. We have to do something, fast!"

Hearing something bahind me, I spun to find a large squadron of Galbadian soldiers marching towards the front gate and felt my eyes grow even wider.

"The enemy's heading this way!" Cam called over the PA.

My head was spinning. We were surrounded, enemies were coming at us from all angles, Kapri was hanging on for dear life, and it was up to me to decide what to do. _Damn!!_ I thought furiously, shaking my head as my heart pounded heavily in my chest. _What do I do?!_

"Shane, did you HEAR ME?!!" Dustin yelled with a glare.

I snapped. "YEAH!" I shouted right back. "But she's not the only one in danger!" As soon as those words were out of my mouth, I couldn't bite back the wince. I hadn't meant for it to sound so cold-hearted. It's just, with everyone in danger, I couldn't just abandon my post as leader to run off and save one person. Not when thousands were counting on me.

"I didn't think you could be so heartless!" Hunter stated angrily, marching up and getting right in my face. "Kapri is gonna die! Don't you care?!?"

Closing my eyes, I staggered back a step and put my hand on my forehead. _We have to divie into 3 groups. Who's gonna do what?!_ "Marah, you go with Cam!" I ordered. _One problem down...hopefully._ "Tori and Hunter, you're with me. We're going to the 2nd Floor classroom. Dustin, you go help Kapri. Do whatever it takes, understand?"

They all nodded and Marah ran off to the elevator, just as Cam came down. They spoke for a moment before running back towards us and past us to the gate. Dustin frowned deeply but sighed and ran off with a shake of his head, heading right back to the Quad.

Tori, Hunter and I ran to the elevator and took it to the 2nd Floor classroom.

Running through the door, we paused when we noticed green mobile armors floating in the air. The disappeared from the window, but after a moment, I heard a punching sound and realized they were grounding themselves on to the side of the Garden. Four paratroopers came sliding down on stabilizer cables and jumped far away from the windows, using their momentum to bring them back and smash the glass.

They ran straight over to a single female SeeD that was protecting two children.

Shaking my head, I ran over to them and blocked one of their attacks with my gunblade.

"Dispose of Garden, as planned!" one of the other troopers called.

"Dispose?!" Hunter cried incredulously.

"Get them!"

Jumping away from the trooper, I waited as Tori used her Blue Magic to cast Mighty Guard on us, basically, casting Protect, Shell, Regen, which allowed us to heal quickly over time, and Nullified all elemental magics cast on us. She then attacked with her whip, lashing it out and letting it wrap firmly around a guard's neck before pulling sharply, causing him to spin and the whip to break his neck.

As he fell, Hunter shot a volley of powerful, exploding shots at another trooper, taking him out.

I cast Double and then soublecast Thundaga on the last two, taking them out, as well. Turning to the wounded SeeD as I sheathed my blade, I knelt beside her. "Good work." I said softly. "Take them somewhere safe."

"Come on you guys! Let's go!" she ordered, standing up shakily as she saluted to me and took off.

"Shane! Shane!"

Frowning, I sighed and raised my head to the ceiling, wondering what Xander wanted now.

"Come to the bridge immediately! Dr. Shayla is here!"

Heading straight to the bridge, I frowned deeply in worry when I noticed a good portion of Balamb Garden's SeeDs laying on the ground or limping by weakly. It seemed that most of our forces were being completely decimated, and the outcome didn't look good!

As I took the elevator to Headmaster Kanoi's former ofics, I noted Shayla standing by the elevator to the bridge, frowning deeply asshe stared at me.

"What's the situation?"

Shaking my head, I saluted wearily. "We were able to stop the first two waves of the attack, but our forces aren't looking too good. Many of our forces are injured. If they send another wave, I don't know if we can hold them." I answered gravely.

Marah came rushing in with a worried look on her face as well, and I knew things weren't good on her part, either.

"How's your team doing?" Dr. Shayla asked her as she rubbed her temples.

"Not good!" Marah was pale and sweaty, panting as she held a gash on her side and treated a deep bruise on her arm. "They're barely holding them off."

"So... Looks like this is it." Shayla mused thoughtfully.

Tori nodded with a groan. "Their Garden has more experienced fighters. Whereas most of our troops are students who are still in training. Like Shane said, one more wave and we might not make it."

Looking at the ground, I thought about what she said and felt a horrible guilt building up for leading the entire Garden, who depended on me, into a suicide mission. _Maybe I should've concentrated our forces on offensive instead of defensive..._ I bit back the urge to shake my head as I realized how futile that would've been. Fighint an army on our turf wasn't working, fighting them on their turf would've been even worse.

"Blake's with them, right?" she continued thoughtfully. "You said it yourself, you can't just run away... Looks like now's the time to face him. You've come this far already. What is there to think about? You're not going to run away, are you?"

_Never!_ Glaring at her, I shook my head firmly. "I'll never run away from him! Besides, attacking them might be our only chance. The only problem is, how are we gonna board their Garden?" Suicide or not, it was our only chance left. We had to make a direct attack. Go for Blake or Sorceress Miko. If we could take them out, the other troops would lose morale and give up.

"Say, how about we crash into their Garden? I know it sounds crazy, but at least we'll be able to get in! Their pilot's been ramming us all along, I'm sure Xander can do it, too!" Hunter suggested after a moment of silent thought.

Shrugging, I nodded. "We have no choice. Let's do it."

That's when Dustin entere,d looking frantic.

Looking around as my worry grew, I noticed that Kapri still wasn't there. "Where's Kapri?"

His head fell. "Sorry, man. There's nothin' I can do! There's no way to get to the Quad! Those bastards have the area barricaded! Man! The only way we can get to her is goin' over the roof or flyin' there."

_...Kapri..._ I thought sadly. It all seemed so hopeless. I didn't want to give up hope, but what could I do? our forces were being decimated. Chances of us winning or even just surviving this battle, were slim to none, and now the possibility of rescuing Kapri just went out the window. _Damn it all!_

Hunter's eyes widened as he looked at me before he shook his head and once again got up into my face. "Whoa! Wait a minute! You just gave up on her, didn't you?!" he demanded angrily. "Listen...do me a favor. _You_ go help Kapri. It may be too late, but don't give up until you're _certain_ there's nothing more you can do!"

"I..." Swallowing heavily, I knew he was right, but I couldn't just abandon my post! "I have to lead the attack..." I cursed myself for how weak my voice sounded.

His glare grew. "I don't care what you have to do, or how you feel! Just do it!" Sighing, he closed his eyes and backed off. "Please, do it for Kapri."

"Listen to Hunter, Shane. She's one of us." Tori said quietly. "A SeeD in her own right."

Marah stalked forward and glared at me. "What're you waiting for?! I can't believe you!" she demanded loudly.

Dustin gave me a pleading look. "C'mon, Shane! Please! It's gotta be you! You're the only one who can save her!"

Hunter began to go on about how he could lead the infiltration of Galbadia Garden and how he knew the place like the back of his hand. He even decided on leading the attack personally. Surprisingly, Tori readily backed him up. She insisted that they, themselves, would clear a path into Galbadia Garden, and then wait for Kapri and I to join them.

Then Dr Shayla cleared her throat and looked at me sternly. "You're forgetting something, Shane. Something very important."

_What?_ What could it be, now?

Motioning or me to follow her, we used the elevator and went to the bridge. Walking over to the mic, Shayla took it and handed it to me with a gentle look in her eyes, her hand poised over the switch. "Talk to your men, Shane. Encourage them. As their leader, it's your duty. You probably never knew, but everyone in Garden looks up to you, they like you." With that being said, she flipped the switch.

Hesitating for a moment, I let her words run through my mind. _Everyone in Garden looks up to you. They like you._ Then, I raised the mic to my lips. "...Everyone, this is Shane." I felt my heart beating painfully, filled with guilt and worry for all the students who blindly followed my orders, all because they 'looked up to me'. "How's everyone doing?" _Stupid question._ "You're all probably too sore to even stand after all this fighting. But..." Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath, feeling tears leak out of me eyes as I knew they were all ready giving so much.

They were giving their all, risking their lives, and for some, losing them. All to help me take down the sorceress. Matron. "But I want everyone to listen to me. We still have a chance to win and I need your help." _How can I possibly ask for more from them? _"This is going to be our final battle. We're going to attack them before they come in again. To do that, we're going to head straight into their Garden."

Dr Shayla was giving me an encouraging smile and Xander was looking at me with a new respect in his eyes as he saluted me with a look of pure determination crossing his face.

"So I want everyone to prepare for a major collision. Take care of all the junior classmen. Tori, Dustin, Marah and Hunter will be leading the attack into Galbadia Garden. As for the rest, I want you to report to them, if you can. SeeD was formed to fight the sorceress; at least, from what I heard. And Garden was created to train SeeDs, so this battle is kinda like Garden's destiny. _Our_ destiny." I wanted to throw the mic out of the bridge and run back to my room and cry. I felt like a villain, ordering these people to give up their lives. And for what? _Destiny_?

Sighing quietly, I thought again to Kapri and mentally begged her to be ok and hang in there a little longer. "It's a gueling battle and I'm sure you're all exhausted, but I don't want to have any regrets. I don't want anyone to look back and regret this day. So..." _This is it..._ "Just this once... I want everyone to give everything they've got. For themselves and for me."

Dr. Shayla flipped the switch off and I sagged against a pillar, letting her take the mic as I brushed away a few stray tears on my face. "You did great." she said softly. "That was wonderful." Turning to Xander, she nodded as her face turned grim. "Ok! Let's bash into them!" she ordered grimly.

Pulling away from the right steering mechanism, Xander quickly moved to the left one and leaned forward, pressing all his weight against it. The Garden lurched violently to the left and bashed hard into Galbadia Garden, locking against them and allowing the troops a chance to board.

Leaving the bridge, I took the elevator down to the 2nd Floor and frowned when I saw a female SeeD kneeling on the fllor, holding a cut on her leg. Running over to her, I pulled out a potion and handed it to her.

"Please help me! I can't find Justin! Justin's gone!" she cried before downing the potion.

_Damn!_ I thought furiously. This so wasn't what I needed right now.

"Please! I can't find him! Help me find Justin!" she begged.

_There's no choice._ Nodding a moment, I sighed. "Stay here. I'll find him." I said firmly.

She nodded in relief. "Oh, thank you!"

Walking along the hall, I looked around and paused when I saw a boy, about 12 years old, running down the hall towards the deck. Running after him, I saw that he was standing in the middle of the hall with a confused and frightened look in his eyes. "Hey, kid. You alright?" I asked, kneeling beside him.

He nodded to me slowly. "Yeah."

"Listen, there's a person waiting for you down the hall. I want you to go to her." I instructed gently.

He nodded again and ran off, meeting up with the woman and the two of them left. Standing up slowly, there was a loud crash behind me and I spun to find a paratrooper come crashing through the deck door in his flying armor. I backed against the wall and glared at him as I discreetly looked for a way out of there.

_Damn! I'm trapped! I gotta find another way out of here!_

The paratrooper sneered at me and I rolled my eyes as I felt along the wall behind me. Feeling a bump, I looked at it carefully and noticed it was the emergency button for the door I was leaning against. Pressing it, I felt a sharp pain in my chest and a pressure against my back that released after a moment.

I looked forward and noticed that the soldier had rammed me. Glaring at him, I punched him in the face, holding tightly to the rope that descended from the machine as he slid down to fight me better.

The armor circled around both our Gardens as we fought, exchanging blows. He kicked me in the stomach after punching me in the chest, and I punched him in the face before blocking another kick and kneeing him in the stomach. I began to get dizzy from the altitude, as well as the blows, but also noticed the guard wasn't going to last much longer, either. Timing a strong kick carefully, I punched him in the face before kicking him and holding on to the rope tightly as he fell to his death far below.

Grabbing the remote, I saw that the armor was quickly descending to the rotating rings below and directed it back up before climbing up the rop and to the cockpit. Sitting there, I controlled the armor, taking it around the Garden until I came to the Quad section and noticed a blonde figure hanging from the side. As I approached, she turned her head to me and gave a relieved smile as I swung the rope in her direction.

Kapri grabbed the rope and we flew away from Garden, landing close by to the main gates, and avoiding the fighting soldiers. She smiled at me and stayed close as she panted and rubbed her arms. "Thanks."

I nodded, speechless. I hadn't noticed until just now just how scared I'd been that I almost lost her. "It was...uh, nothing." I answered awkwardly.

"There's the entrance!" Her face had turned from me as she looked around. "Come on!"

Following after her, we avoided many Galbadian and Balamb SeeDs as we ran across the battlefield. Where ever I could, I used my gunblade or a spell, to take our a soldier and give our troops the upper hand. Seeing a Blizzage spell hit a trooper, I looked ahead to see Kapri wink before casting a Firaga at another troop as she ran.

I couldn't help but grin.

Finally making it to the back entrance, we took a moment to catch our breaths.

"You know something, I couldn't afford to fall of that cliff and die." she said with a thoughtful look on her face as she held her necklace tightly in her hand. "I have something very important that belongs to you. I can't die until I give it back!" She opened her hand and showed the ring on her necklace. Or rather, the ring_s_. One, I clearly recognized as my Griever ring, and I raised an eyebrow. "Dustin gave it to me, see? I've been holding onto it."

Biting back a grin, I masked my face in a cold glare. _I'm gonna kill him._ I thought in slight amusement. "That's my favorite ring." I told her in a deadly calm voice. "You better give it back."

"I'm sure it is." she replied, grinning openly at me. "It's really cool-looking. What's the monster on it, anyways?"

_Is the design _that_ bad?_ I wondered briefly. "It's not a monster. It's a lion. Lions are known for their great strength and pride."

She looked at the ring closely before recognition flashed across her face. "Hmm...great strength...and pride... Sounds kinda like you, Shane."

Rolling my eyes, I shook my head. "I wish..." I muttered quietly.

"Hmmm...so this LION of yours...does it have a name?" she asked with a grin.

"Griever."

"So that's what you call it. You know, Dustin said he'll make me one exactly like it. Who knows? Maybe I can become like a lion, too. That'd be crazy, huh?!" she began to laugh as her face turned a deep red. "I mean, everyone might, y'know, get the wrong idea about us." she explained as she chuckled nervously and her face turned even redder.

_If it's so crazy, why do you sound so delighted?_ I wondered with a raised eyebrow. _Everyone is trying to get us together. It's so obvious, even I can tell._ Sighing, I looked to the sky. "Sounds like you _want_ everyone to get the wrong idea." I muttered as I felt my face heating up. _Would that be such a bad thing?_

Her face paled before turning a red that put her previous blushes to shame. "What?!" Blinking a couple of moments, she began to shake her head quickly. "No! No, no, no, no, no!" She raised her hands and waved them wildly.

"Well, everyone's waiting. Let's go." I said firmly, walking to the entrance of Galbadia Garden.

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Sorry for the humungous chapter, but there was no place I could think of to break it without messing it up. This marks the nearing the end of the second part of the script. I'm almost halfway done this fic...

Hope you like it.

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_...Kapri? What's wrong with Kapri?_

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi.


	35. Final Showdown, Battling Miko

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : Despite the 'Final Showdown' in the title, this is not the end of the fic.

Meltdown - This is a non-elemental spell that works like it's name, and cannot be reflected with a reflect spell. It's a very powerful black magic spell, like Flare, and Ultima. It drains the enemy and casts Poison, Silence, and Blind on them.

Now Sorceress Miko, and other major enemies like that are usually impervious to Blinde/Poison/Silence type spells, but the damage can still be done.

Ultima - A fairly difficult spell to describe, so use your imagination, or try finding it online. LOL.

Flare - Non-elemental, but looks like a fire spell. Causes a massive explosion and massive damage.

Cerberus - A GF I will likely rarely to never use in this fic, because he only casts Triple and Double on the characters.

Alexander - A GF that is impossible to describe, and it's attack is impossible to describe. The only thing I can suggest is looking it up on youtube.

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(Galbadia Garden)

We entered the long hallway of Galbadia Garden and I wasn't at all surprised to find the gang waiting for us.

"Kapri!" Marah squealed, running over to hug her tightly.

Kapri looked a little lost, but wrapped her arms around the brunette and hugged her back, letting herself relax.

"You're here!" Dustin cried happily, running over and picking her up, swinging her around before putting her back down.

Tori nodded happily and hugged her lightly. "Are you alright?" she asked softly.

Hunter entered from a side hallway and nodded with a smile to see Kapri safe and sound. Then, with a sigh, he turned to me. "The sorceress should be here, somewhere."

_No turning back now._ I thought grimly. "Forget about the past." I said emotionlesly, biting back the pain of the thought of fighting Matron. "She's our enemy now. Don't think twice for a second. She won't. There's no way we can fight her like that. I, for one, can't. She chose to fight and became our enemy. We Choose to fight back. We have no choice. At least...I'd like to think so." Frowning, I looked down the hall. _It seems like I'm the only one confused._ "We've come this far. I guess there's no need for me to say anything."

"We're still listening." Kapri said softly. "Tell us your feelings."

Placing my hand against my forehead, I shook my head slowly. "I'll tell you leter...after we get out of this. Let's go."

Choosing Marah and Tori in my main group, I kept Kapri, Hunter nad Dustin as backup, in case we needed their help. I knew Kapri was an accomplished fighter, and could hold her own, but I felt compelled to protect her.

We looked around the Garden carefully. There were still many students in the Garden, but none posed a threat. In fact, they wanted to help us, giving us card keys needed to get into the restricted parts of the Garden. Some sold items, some offered to play a game of cars to take our minds off of troubles, and they all offered any information that we could possibly use to our advantage.

It seemed that Sorceress Miko had kept some of them there against their will, and they knew they couldn't fight her, so they depended on us. But most of the students and staff had been kicked out of Garden before all this began, and Garden Master Tyzonn had been dismissed from duty.

Heading up to the second floor, I paused and quickly pulled out my gunblade when I saw Taylor and Eric standing there, but they seemed weary and didn't bother to arm themselves back, so I put away my gunblade, walking over to them.

Sighing heavily, Eric slowly put up his fists, looking defeated and confused. "Let's just go..." He said with a resigned voice. "Let's just get this over with, ya know?"

Taylor sighed and shook her head. "...REQUEST."

He nodded. "...We're leavin' Blake up to you, ya know? We don't know what's goin' on anymore, ya know? ...We just want the old Blake back, ya know?"

_Blake..._ I thought with a frown as I nodded to them. _He probably thinks he can't go back now._

"...FATIGUED." Taylor closed her eyes and leaned against the wall.

Making our way to the main hall, we went to cross through but paused and armed ourselves when we noticed a large, three-headed dog standing in the center of it. It was a beige color with deep red streaks along it's sides and down the middle of it's foreheads, with glowing red eyes.

"So the people here know about GF?" Dustin asked curiously.

I shrugged. "Ahh, let's just take it." At least then, they wouldn't be able to use it against us.

"...PRETTY CONFIDENT. LET'S SEE HOW YOU DO." the creature roared.

We engaged it in battle, and had to pull out all our stops. We all drew Triple, and Full-Life spells from it before we began our attack. It was able to do crippling blows with one hit, so we kept Hunter, Marah and Kapri on backup, seeing as how Marah could easily cast three spells at once, and Kapri could use Angelo to make us temporarily invincible to it's attacks.

The GF, Cerberus, cast powerful magics, as well, making the battle even harder. More than once, our entire main group had been knocked out, but luckily, Marah had Full-Life as one of her ultimate magics and could revive us all at once, bringing us back to full strength.

Tori used her Blue Magic to cast Mighty Guard every time we were revived, and it helped.

The key to beating him was to put him to Sleep, cast Silence and Poison, and beat it senseless with strong magics. Elemental spells worked well, but non-elemental spells like Flare worked even better. I was just glad for the draw points we'd found, stocking up on Flare, Ultima, and Holy.

Soon enough, the GF swayed from side to side before collapsing to the ground, and staring at us wearily. "NOT BAD...MORTALS." he admitted hesitantly before dissipating into a light mist and flowing into my body, small jolts of electricity running to the others.

After spending a little time, and a lot of items, healing up, e headed to the stairs and went to the second floor, opening up an elevator and taking it to the top floor.

I wasn't surprised to find the sorceress lounging on a hammock made of whisps of magic, in a pale yellow color. Nor was I surprised to find Blake standing right in front of her, grinning madly at us. Drawing my blade, I kept a wary eye on both of them, not wanting to be caught off guard.

"Oh, you guys shouldn't have..." Blake said with a grin. "I was gonna come visit you back in my old home."

"Shut up." I said evenly, not wanting to deal with his attitude and mind games.

Shaking his head, Blake raised his gunblade so it pointed to the sky. "Have you guys come to fight Matron? After all she's done for us? Marah, right?" He looked at the brunette with an appraising smirk. "I wish we'd had more time to get to know each other.

She shuddered and made a face, stepping closer to Dustin as she glared at the former member of Balamb Garden. "Nahh. You're not my type."

He turned to Tori with a raised eyebrow, a tiny hint of pain washing over his face before it quickly faded. "To-Instructor Hanson, I'm still one of your favorite students, aren't I?" His tone had the barest hint of pleading in it, like he was desperate for someone to listen to him.

She shook her head and glared coolly at him, crossing her arms over her chest. "Not anymore."

Looking to Hunter, he frowned. "Hey! You're a Galbadian student! Get over here!" he ordered angrily.

Smirking, Hunter shook his head, hoisting his gun onto his shoulder. "I'm happy right here, thanks."

"Hey, chicken-wuss." Blake smirked again at Dustin, seemingly forgetting Hunter right away. "Lot's happened between us, huh?" There was a trace of sadness in his voice, but it refused to show in his eyes.

Dustin smacked one hand into the other before adjusting his gloves with a glare. "Yeah! And I'm dyin' to get even!"

"Kapri..." His head turned to her and he frowned as his eyes narrowed, focusing on her throat, and then her crossbow, which was aimed at him. "What are you doing here?" He seemed genuinely confused before shrugging and grinning. "You're gonna fight me, too? C'mon! Remember a year ago...?"

"Stop it!" she yelled, shaking a little.

I frowned at the implications in his sentence, but then remembered that this Kapri hadn't been here a year ago. Whatever he was talking about was with someone else, despite the fact that he didn't know it.

With a roll of my eyes, I shook my head. "It's too late, Blake. You can't mess with our minds. To us, you're just another enemy, like one of those monsters."

His eyes widened before they narrowed dangerously at my words and he took a step forward, lowering his blade so it pointed at my chest. Behind him, Sorceress Miko watched the whole thing with a bored expression, but Blake didn't seem to care.

Glaring angrily at us, he growled a little. "You're comparing _me_ to one of them?!" he asked incredulously before he shook his head and began to laugh. "I ain't no monster. I'm the sorceress' knight! And look at you, attacking like a swarm. You're the ones who are the monsters!"

He rushed forward and swung at Kapri who didn't expect it. Acting quickly, I lifted my blade and easily blocked his attack, pushing him back as the sorceress' eyes seemed to light up as the battle began.

Kapri shot me a grateful look before turning to Blake and glaring, whistling, she called out Angelo and shot him on her crossbow, knocking Blake back a foot. Tori and Marah immediately attacked together, using their whip and nun chucks to hit him in the chest and send him staggering back further.

Dustin ran forward and punched him in the stomach befor aiming a kic at his head, but Blake ducked under it and hit the martial artist in the back of the head with the butt of his blade. Stunned, Dustin staggered back to us, and Marah cast Triple on herself before quickly casting three more Triples, one on me, one on Hunter and one on Dustin.

Hunter quickly cast Protect on himself, Kapri and Dustin, and Dustin cast Shell on Kapri and me.

Running forward, I swung at Blake and winced at the clash of metal on metal as it resounded through the room, Pushing him back, I mentally recalled all the injured students and frowned deeply as I rushed at him, swinging again and again and again. He kept staggering back with a look of surprise on his face at my attacks, and I backed off just in time for three Thundagas to hit him.

Collapsing to one knee, Blake clutched at his chest and gave a weak smirk to us. "Is that all you got?!"

Kapri cast three Flares, and Tori cast three Holys, and Blake's eyes rolled back before he shook his head and collapsed to his hands and knees.

"This can't be! Why?!" he demanded.

Shaking her head, Sorceress Miko stood up and glared at us as she waved her hands. "Worthless child." she muttered before she pointed to the ground and she began to sink through it.

Frowning, I heard Hunter mutter that the auditorium was right below us and sighed at Blake's weak figure before turning and stalking off, taking the elevator down to the second floor. Running along a long, round hallway, we encountered many monsters and soldiers and beat them all back. Then, standing right outside the door to the auditorium, we healed up before entering.

I could feel the hair on the back of my neck standing up as the electrical energies surged through the room and it filled with a light pruple mist. We stood in the center of the floor, looking at the empty rows of stairs, and the empty podium in front of us.

Something clearly wasn't right.

_What's going on...?_ I mentally questioned, holding my gunblade ready. I knew the sorceress disappeared through the floor, so where was she?

As if answering my thoughts, there was a large surge in the power, and the sorceress came flying down from the roof, shattering a giant scoreboard above us as she landed gracefully at the podium.

"So the time has come." she stated in a bored tone as her yellow tinted eyes stared right into my face. "You're the legendary SeeD meant to face me?" Her tone was scornful.

Frowning, I felt my eyes narrow in confusion. _What's she talking about?_

"I must say, I am impressed. ...An impressive nuisance, your life ends here." Blake entered through a side door, limping heavily and panting as he moved to stand in front of the sorceress, glaring at us. "Worthless fool." Sorceress miko growled, glaring at his back.

_You're not our Matron._ I thought angrily.

"I'm the sorceress' knight! You'll never...get past me!" he grinned waekly, staggering.

Shaking my head, I sighed. I ran forward and slashed at him multiple times, surprised at his movements as he blocked a lot of my hits. Even in his injured state, Blake was extremely powerful. He took several hits and just kept standing.

Kapri shot him with her crossbow and Tori hit him with her whip. Hunter and Marah spent their time casting Triples, Protects, and Reflects on us all before they, too, joined in the fight.

Dustin closed his eyes and drew the GF Alexander from Blake before drawing Haste and triplecasting it until everyone was covered.

Drawing Meltdown from Blake, I sighed again, sadly, before triplecasting it on him and watching as he fell to his knees and dropped his sword. "I can't afford to lose... ...Damn, I'm disgraced!"

Sneering, Sorceress Miko ignored him like he wasn't worth her time. "Defeated... Useless fool. Enough play. SeeD must die!"

Dodging another one of her ice blade attacks, we swiftly counterattacked. I triplecasted Holy on her, followed by Dustin triplecasting Meltdown. Marah got hit by an ice blade, along with Hunter, and Kapri used two Full-Life spells to revive them.

Closing my eyes, I summoned Diablos.

Everything turned dark and a giant ball of black energy formed in the air. It grew larger and larger until it was of massive proportions. Then, a demonic GF floated down, out of the bottom, melting out of the ball like a shadow. It had draconic features and haunting red eyes. Long claws graced it's fingers and one hand shot up as it's wings unfurled. The hand held the ball of darkness, causing purple energy to shoot through it, and slowly, his hand disappeared into it.

Thrusting his arm forward, Diablos threw the ball of dark energy at Miko and hit her dead on. Within it, she shifted and melted as the dimensional space tore at her body. Once it faded, she staggered back, clutching her chest and glared at us.

"Impudent SeeDs!" Raising her hand, she cast more ice blades and Tori, Dustin, Marah and Kapri were hit, knocking them out.

Turning to Hunter, I nodded and ran to Kapri's side, carefully lifting her head and using a phoenix down to revive her, before handing her a hi-potion to heal her wounds. Once that was done, I ran to Marah and did the same, thought maybe not _as_ carefully as I'd handled Kapri.

Turning To Miko, I watched as she raised her hand again and quickly shook my head, triple casting Meltdown on her and watching as she stumbled back with a pained look.

"A...ahhh!"

A bright pink light formed around her body before moving out of it and seemingly shattering into thin air. I felt like my body suddenly weighed a ton and fell to the ground, barely able to keep my eyes open. _What happened? My...body._ I couldn't move.

Everything was hazy. I don't know if it was me, or the room, but everything was white and though I could see, things were blurry.

Kapri collapsed as well. The others remained standing, though none of them seemed able to move, either.

Slowly getting back up, Kapri staggered over to where Blake laid, seemingly in a trance or heavily dazed. She dropped to her knees and leaned forward, a moment later, reaching out and lifting his head into her lap.

I felt pain course through my body as I watched this. _Kapri..._

Her face lowered towards his and I was sure she was going to kiss him. From my spot, where I lay, I was unable to see if she did or not, but I knew it... I felt something was really wrong with all this.

_Kapri...Blake..._

My eyes widened as she leaned a little more forward, and a moment later, Blake slowly leaned up, getting up and walking out of the room like he didn't even see us. Like he was a zombie.

Kapri then fell face down onto the ground and stopped moving all together. Tori ran to her side, and seemed to check her pulse. "Kapri, are you alright?" Her voice was shaky and seemed so far away, through the ringing in my ears, but I could understand what she said.

"Shane, Tori, Marah..."

Managing to weakly shift my gaze to Sorceress Miko, I watched as she leaned against the podium, looking at us with pain and pride-filled eyes.

"Hunter, Dustin... You've all grown so much...and become so strong..." Her voice was gentle and filled with love and kindess. "I have waited for this day, and yet, feared this day would come." She sighed and closed her eyes. "Is today a joyous day, or an odious day?"

Suddenly, her eyes shot open and she stood up straight. "Where is Kelly?!" Her tone filled with panic as she looked around. "Have I protected Kelly?!"

"Shane!"

Looking weakly at Tori, I felt my eyes narrow as I saw the terror on her face.

"Something's wrong with Kapri!"

_...Kapri? What's wrong with Kapri?_ I thought in a panic, struggling to make my voice work.

It was all too much for me, and the next thing I know, the welcome darkness swept over me, whisking me away into a dreamless sleep.

**END OF DISK 2**

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Hmmm... Another chappie done. I'm about halfway done the script... I think. LOL.

Sorry about the long wait between updates. I'm still not 100 percent better, but felt bad in waiting so long to update.

Hope you like it, and most questions will be answered at some point in the fic.

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"After the battle...her body was cold...she didn't move..."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	36. Another Dream World

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : I had no idea what to call this chapter. LOL.

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(Balamb Garden, Normal POV)

It had been two full days since Kapri fell into her coma. No one knows what happened or how to cure her. Spells were useless, and everyone was worried. That included Shane.

Laying on his bed silently, he frowned as he tried to recall everything that happened. After their last battle with Sorceress Miko, she'd returned to her old self, except for her appearance, and had gone to see Kanoi.

_Is it over...?_ he wondered silently. The Galbadian Garden had retreated, promising no more threats to us. The Sorceress was defeated, the threat of war stopped, but... Blake... He was still out there, doing god-knows-what. _What happened...?_ It was like he was in a trance when he walked away. His eyes were glazed and his face devoid of any emotion.

Shane's frown deepened as he thought about Kapri, lying so helplessly on a cot in the infirmary. _Kapri... What happened to Kapri...?_ One minute she was fine, the next, she was in a coma. It just didn't make any sense. And what happened with Blake?!

Nothing made sense. Once again, Shane found himself in a world of confusion. All sorts of questions swirled in his mind and with a groan, he pulled himself up, heading out of his room and making his way to the infirmary.

Standing solemnly beside her bed, Shane felt the guilt and pain rise in his heart and bit back a bitter tear as the PA beeped.

"Shane, can you hear me?" came Tori's voice. "Head to Miko's house at once." It sounded like she wanted to make it more of a request but since everyone could hear her, she went for stern instead. "Sorceress Miko... Matron, is back at the orphanage."

(The Orphanage, Shane's POV)

Making our way to the old stone orphanage, I led the group to the front door and watched as they all paused with nervousness and fear. Not because the woman they were about to face was the same woman we'd just fought as the sorceress, but because it was our _Matron_. The only real mother figure any of us ever knew, besides Dustin, who had a loving adopted mother.

"...I feel uncomfortable seeing her." Tori murmured with a worried frown. She wrung her hands nervously, and I knew she was recalling the fact that we fought our Matron, and she was probably worried about Matron's reaction to that.

Marah nodded and turned to me, giving me a weak smile. "I'll go in after you, Shane, ok?" she asked weakly.

With a sigh, I walked on ahead, ignoring Dustin's comments about feeling nervous, and Hunter's about having all kinds of questions. I felt the same way, and had questions of my own, but once again, I was put in the leader position.

Stepping up to the door, I paused and frowned, recalling how I stood on the back porch, crying for 'sis Kelly'. Shaking my head to clear the image, I pushed open the weak door, wincing when it fell off the hinges and leaned against the wall. I walked through the decrepit building, my mind flashing back to all the times I'd shared here, with the others.

Finally, I found Matron, still dressed as the sorceress but with the yellow gone out of her eyes, standing near Headmaster Kanoi, who looked a little troubled as he watched her with concern. I'm sure it was out of worry that something would happen to her again.

Going to him first, I saluted and watched patiently as he chuckled wryly. "...Many thanks for your hard work." Sighing, he looked at me closely, warily. "...Are you mad? I don't really blame you. All I do is talk big, but in times of trouble, I run away." Shaking his head, he grinned dryly. "I was in a no-win situation. Your loss would mean your death, and your win would mean the death of my wife. I just couldn't bear..." He blinked back obvious tears. "To face either situation. I don't care about myself, but please...forgive Miko."

Nodding a little, I bit back the urge to tell him I never really blamed her. I knew there were forces greater than her at work, and something had a hold of her. It wasn't our Matron we fought.

I went to her next, deciding to hear what she had to say.

Giving me a soft hug, she sighed and looked at me sadly as the rest of the group entered. "My children..." Her voice was soft and loving, the voice we remembered from our Matron. "Please, forgive me. I raised you as my own, yet still, I..."

As she trailed off, I felt my mouth quirk up in a little smile. "We feel the same." We fought her, knowing who she was.

Dustin voiced that. "We fought you, knowing you're our Matron..."

"Matron..." Hunter said softly.

"You are SeeDs, I know, you may not back out of battle. You were magnificent, but it is not yet over. I may yet stil..." She trailed off as she looked away, clearly upset with what happened. "...I have been possessed all this time. I was at the mercy of Sorceress Ultimecia. Ultimecia is a sorceress from the future, a sorceress many generations ahead of our own. Her objective is to find Kelly. I know Kelly very well, and I know about her powers. Ultimecia is a fearful sorceress, who's heart is filled with anger and hate."

Her eyes hardened and she sighed. "There was no way I was going to let her get her hands on Kelly. The only thing I could do was to lose my soul to Ultimecia, and surrender control of my mind. The end result was, well, you know. The sorceress that appeared in Galbadia was, in fact, Ultimecia...inside my shell."

It made a lot of sense. It explained why President Deling seemed so confused by her behavior, despite her being his ally.

"Ultimecia has yet to achieve her goal. I believe she may try to use my body again, to achieve her goals. I plan to make a stand this time...but if it fails... I may have to face you again in battle. I ask for your support, young SeeDs."

Looking down, I frowned. I didn't want to face Matron in battle again. There had to be a way to keep Ultimecia from getting control of her, but...how? And if we could, what was to stop her from finding someone else with sorceress abilities and possessing them?

"Have you all heard of Sorceress Adel, before?" Matron continued softly.

Looking back up at her, I nodded a little, recalling General Baliton speaking of a Sorceress Adel who once ruled Esthar. Apparently, she was a tyrant and ruled the people with fear and pain.

"She was the ruler of Esthar." Dustin said quietly. "Back during the Sorceress War. No one knows of her whereabouts... That's what I learned."

I nodded to him, confirming what he said.

"The Galbadians must have thought I was the one who received her powers. However, that is not the case. I received the powers of the previous sorceress at the age of 5."

"I don't quite understand..." Hunter statted with a frown.

Biting my lip, I knew what was coming. If Adel has disappeared some time ago, but no one had received word of a successor to her powers... Chances were...

"I believe Sorceress Adel is alive." Matron stated grimly with a frown or worry and fear. "And that Ultimecia used my body to... To get to Adel, to use the body of Sorceress Adel. Sorceress Adel is the type that would not hesitate to use her powers for her own gain. Should Sorceress Ultimecia from the future, bequeath her anger and hatred unto Adel, their power would be unimaginable..."

Hearing this, I shook my head. _I don't care about all this._ I thought darkly as I turned and headed to the door. My concern at that moment had nothing to do with these two evil sorceress' or their plans for the world, but for the young woman lying helplessly on a cot in the infirmary. _The only thing I care about is Kapri.._

"Shane! I'm sure Matron has much more to say!" Dustin cried in protest as I got to the open doorway.

_I've heard enough!_ Spinning to the doorframe, I lashed out and punched it as hard as I could, ignoring the shocked, worried looks I got from everyone, as well as the pain that shot up my arm from it. _I understand that listening to what Matron has to say is important, but Kapri..._ "Matron, do you know what's wrong with Kapri?" I asked quietly, letting my fist drop to my side and my head sink to my chest.

She seemed to think about it a moment. "Kapri is the girl in light blue? I remember vaguely...what happened to her?"

_That's what I'd like to know._ "She was with us when we fought you..." I winced at the reminder and frowned as the images flashed through my mind of her and Blake. "After the battle...her body was cold...she didn't move..." _She wouldn't wake up..._

"Did Kapri die?!" Kanoi yelled in shock.

_No! _"NO!!!" I yelled, spinning and glaring at him, swinging my arm in emphasis for him not to go there.

"Forgive me, Shane." Matron said quietly, looking pained and sad. "I don't think I can be of any help."

I nodded after a moment. "...It's ok."

Kanoi began to go on about how he felt about what was going on. How he understood my pain and confusion, but also, how I was in a role of leadership and needed to focus on the many instead of the few.

He didn't understand anything at all...

_...Dammit!_

"Ultimecia's objective is to find Kelly." Matron stated again, going over some of the more important information.

But I wasn't paying attention at him. I could hear the words, but they sounded like they were coming from so far away. Distant, faint, they were more of a nuisance than anything. My thoughts were on one thing...one _person_ alone.

_First time we met was the day I became a SeeD. We met again...in Timber._

"Kelly's mysterious power...being able to send people's consciousness' into the past." Matron continued solemnly.

"So, Ultimecia wants to use Kelly's power, right?" I faintly heard Tori asking.

I faced the ground, feeling my fists shake with helpless anger at our situation.

_We argued a lot at first. You were always upset at the way I was treating the others. But...in time, things began to change._

"I get it. Ultimecia wants to use the power to send her thoughts further into the past." someone stated, but the voices had faded so much, I couldn't figure out who it was.

"What's she want in the past?" That was Marah...or Dustin... I couldn't make it out.

_You were looking at me... You smiled when our eyes met._

"Time compression."

"Time compression?"

_It made me feel...tranquil._

"It's time magic. Past, present, future, they all get combined into one."

"What's going to happen to the world? Why would someone want to live in a time like that?"

_Kapri...give me another chance._...

"I can't even imagine a world where time is compressed!"

"Yo! Shane! You even listening?!"

Blinking a moment, I winced when the sharp tone dragged me out of my thoughts and back to the present. Looking up, I noticed everyone either glaring at me in confusion or staring at me in worry. "So basically..." I began, surprisingly remembering everything I'd barely heard to begin with. "All we need to do is prevent Ultimecia from getting her hands on Kelly."

"Yeah, but..." Tori looked troubled.

"We're going back to Garden." I cut her off, glaring at the ground and taking up the role of the leader. "We need to let everyone know." _And I want to see Kapri._

"Hey, we're worried about Kapri, too, y'know!" Hunter shouted angrily.

"Then why don't you...?!" Managing to control my anger, I shook my head and turned my back on them. "Never mind." Heading away from the orphanage, I made my way back to Garden alone, knowing they'd follow me sooner or later. They knew what our mission was, and they also knew we didn't have the time to sit and chat with Matron.

Once I got back, I headed straight for the bridge and ignored Xander as I grabbed the mic and began my report to the Garden. I filled them in the best I could, on our situation at hand and sighed quietly as my mind wandered back to Kapri. With a frown, I forced myself to concentrate on the mission at hand.

"That about covers the update. our task at hand is to find Kelly. Then we'll deal with Ultimecia. I believe that Kelly is on the White SeeD ship, but we still need to find it. We'll gather information for the time being, be prepared for battle at any time. And...Sorceress Miko is back at her home now. She's no longer our enemy, so let's just leave her alone."

I knew not everyone would take kindly to that order, or would be so forgiving. With a frown, I replaced the mic and turned off the PA system.

Heading down to the infirmary, I sighed as I knelt beside Kapri's cot. This wasn't right. After everything she'd done, this was her reward?

I took her pale hand and held it against my cheek lightly, wincing at the coolness of her flesh. _Kapri...you feel so cold. Are you going to be like this forever?_ No... I didn't want to think like that. "Isn't there anything I can do?!" I demanded loudly as I felt tears come to my eyes. "You were so full of life... Now you don't even make a sound." I couldn't get over how peaceful she looked. Her pale face was relaxed in her coma-like state, and her beautiful blue eyes hidden behind her eyelids. "I want to hear your voice." I whispered as a single tear made it's way down my cheek. "Kapri... Call my name." I begged.

Suddenly, I felt dizzy, and watched curiously as the room spun. I know it was Kelly, using her power to send me to the past, and relaxed, letting it carry me away from my troubles.

Falling face down on her cot, I let the sleep overtake me.

(With Tommy, Normal POV)

"Why the hell do _I_ have to do this?!" Tommy yelled, wearing some light, decorative armor and holding a prop gunblade. Looking at the weapon with a face, he turned to his friends.

The trio were standing on a large rock cliff, surrounded paths, deep drops, high rock walls, and sparse plants. There were also Mesmirs, a type of evil unicorn, and Bite Bugs hunting around here.

If one looked carefully, you could see the giant, lime green, rectangular shaped, floating ruin that climbed over the distant city. It was the same place Tommy had been chased out of, where Jason lost his voice.

Zack shrugged and raised an eyebrow. ""Cause we have no money." he stated pointedly.

Jason raised his own eyebrow and stared silently at Tommy, obviously trying to say something with his look.

Wincing, Tommy raised his hands. "Alright, I'm sorry!!!" He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Yeah, so it was kinda my fault we stayed at the hotel so often. But hell, I'm not cut out to be an actor!!!"

"So you say..." Zack grinned with a chuckle. "But we know you're really quite excited..." He exchanged a look with Jason, who nodded silently and smirked.

"Ok everyone!" a voice yelled from around the corner. "Take your positions!"

Frowning, Tommy walked over to a pile of costume stuff on the ground and rifled through it, pulling on heavier, silver armor. "Man, I can't believe this director, making a movie with _me_...an amateur... What am I supposed to do?!"

Jason glared silently at him and Tommy sighed loudly. "Alright, alright! So we were lucky to get the job. As long as we make some money, right?" He finished pulling on the heavy suit of armor and winced as he clomped forward, trying not to lose his balance. "A-Are you serious?!" He demanded incredulously. "What kind of costume is this?!?"

Jason chuckled silently and Zack snickered as they gazed upon their friend. "Ah, ah, ah! No complaining." Zack stated sternly. "Let's go, let's go, let's go!" He shooed Tommy around the corner.

Stumbling to the director, who was a young man with long blonde hair, Tommy sighed. The director on the other hand, looked mightily impressed by the look of the costume. "Hey, look at you. Not bad." He gestured to a young woman with shoulder length brown hair and black eyes, dressed in a white gown with pink trim and a silver scarf around her shoulders. "This is your co-star, Alyssa, who'll be playing the part of the sorceress."

"Hi, nice to meet you!" she stated with a bubbly personality, smiling brightly.

"All we need now, is someone to play the dragon..." The director paused as Jason and Zack wandered on to the set absently. "Oh...! Perfect. Hey! You two back there!"

Zack looked surprised and wary. "Yes...?"

"Look, I'm kinda in a bind. I really need someone to play the dragon, but I'm short on actors. Do you think you could go put on the dragon suit? I'll pay ya..."

Hesitating for a moment, Zack slowly nodded. "I...guess so." He and Jason left, and the director gestured for Tommy and Alyssa to follow him a little ways away.

Unfortunately, that meant they didn't hear the roar, or the screams of terror from Zack.

Once the director had Tommy and Alyssa set up, he nodded and ran over to his small camera crew, nodding happily. "Alright everyone! Scene 12, Death of the Sorceress, take 1!"

Alyssa put on a clearly fake terrified expression and clasped her hands in front of her dramatically. "Oh, Sir Knight...Please save me from the wicked dragon!"

"Oh...ok..." Wincing, Tommy took a quick, deep breath. "I...I'll s-save you from the dragon." _Damn! I'm gettin' nervous up here!_ Looking at the gunblade, he raised it over his head. _And what's with the gunblade? Haven't used one of these since training. Kind of like this...?_ Swinging the blade experimentally, he smiled a little to himself, pleased with the effect.

"Hey, not bad." The director mused. "I'll just put in some voice overs. Ok!!! Bring on the dragon!!"

There was silence as everyone waited for the dragon, but nothing happened. With a slight glare, the director sighed. "Come on, guys! The dragon!" he called impatiently. Hearing a rumbling, he nodded happily. "Alright! Here we go!"

A giant red dragon appeared, it's scaled shining a ruby red in the faint sunlight. It stomped down the path, towards Tommy and stopped in front of him, roaring loudly.

"Woooow!! Just like the real thing!" the director whistled in awe. "Excellent work Zack!! ...!" Pausing a moment, he frowned. "Wait... Was the costume _that_ big?"

_Whoa!_ Tommy ducked under an attack from the dragon and raised an eyebrow. _ack and Jason are takin' this pretty seriously._ "Man, looks like the real thing." he mused quietly, taking in the realistic scales and sharp fangs that glinted malevolantly at him.

The dragon roared again and attacked Tommy, but he managed to block it with the gunblade. Luckily, it was a real weapon. It just had a dulled blade. Frowning, he stared at the dragon as he got back up. _G-Geez! Take it easy, Zack...!_ His eyes widened as they locked on the golden, slit eyes of the Ancient, Ruby Dragon. "...What the...! Is this the real thing?!?"

The director's eyes widened and he shook his head. "WHAT?!?! No wonder... What am I doing?! I'm getting outta here!!" Grabbing his camera, he bit a hasty bow to Tommy. "W-Well Sir Knight... It's all yours!" he stuttered, running off.

Alyssa's eyes went wide and she took a step back, visibly swallowing at the sight of the massive dragon. "S-S-Sir Knight...I must bid you farewell." With that, she turned and ran off as fast as she could, tripping over her skirt and hitching it up as she ran on.

"_Wait!!_ Don't just leave me here!!" Tommy yelled. He tried to take off after them, but was blocked by an attack from the dragon and groaned. "Tch!" _It's not gonna let me go. Hmmm...the gunblade..._

Raising the blade, he swiftly blocked an attack before lunging forward and digging the blade into the neck of the dragon. He repeated the gesture a few more times until he took a hit in the side, wincing at the hole in the armor and the bite mark in his side. Slashing forward, again, he managed to knock the dragon out and took off down the path as fast as he could, removing the armor and running to where he'd stashed his gun. Grabbing it, he sighed in relief and ran down a sandy path until he ran into two figures, walking warily along the path, looking a little worse for the wear.

Together, they ran along the path until they ran into another Ruby Dragon which they fought and defeated easily with their regular weapons, only to have another one appear in the distance and make it's way towards them.

"Man, how many of these things are there?! They just keep comin'! We gotta get outta here!" Tommy shouted.

Zack seensed to sense something and looked in the distance, to the city. "What...is that?"

Tommy followed his gaze to notice the large, green ruin moving slowly past the hi-tech city of Esthar and towards a monument.

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Hope you like it.

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"YOU SON-OF-A-BITCH!! What did I say?! WHAT DID I SAY, HUH?!?!? I told you to take care of her!!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	37. Searching For Kelly

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : For those of you that don't know, healing items can be used in the same way as healing magics, against enemies. Just as Life can instantly kill an undead monster, so can a phoenix down.

White SeeDs are just like other SeeDs, only they are a special force trained personally by Miko.

Esthar is a high-tech, furturistic city. Complete with hovercars, forcefields, and more.

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(With Shane, Shane's POV)

_**"I can't disconnect..."**_

Frowning as I took in the absolute darkness, I tried to find the familiar, feminine voice. _What's this 'connect' thing...?_ I mentally questioned, being unable to speak.

The voice seemed to jump in surprise. _**"Shane? Is that you?"**_

I nodded silently. _Yeah._ I recognized the voice now. It was Kelly. Of course.

_**"'Connect' is just a term I use when referring to my 'special power'. Oh! I know. I must be asleep. That's why I can't disconnect. I can't control it when sleeping. I'm sorry Shane, but please let me use your soul just a little bit longer."**_

_Let me go back._ I mentally pleaded, wanting to figure out what happened with Kapri.

**Flashback**

We were at the orphanage again, but this time, I wasn't seeing myself crying for Kelly. This time I saw Tommy speaking to Matron as she used to be.

"She ain't here, either." he stated with worry and disappointment.

Matron bowed and shook her head sadly. "If I may ask..." she stated in worry. "What happened to this 'Kelly'?"

Sighing, Tommy turned and leaned against the stone wall of the orphanage, and I took a moment to notice it looked a lot newer, meaning this must've been back when we first arrived there, somewhere. "She was kidnapped by Esthar soldiers. I've been travellin', tryin' to find any way I possibly can to get into Esthar, but..." He frowned and shook his head.

Nodding in understanding, Matron frowned. "They are looking for a successor to Sorceress Adel's powers, am I correct?"

He nodded vigorously. "Yeah, yeah! That's exactly it!" he shouted a little, wincing and looking at the ground in clear pain.

"Is she your daughter?"

He laughed a little and shook his head. "No. I'm more of an Uncle to her. It's just...she's so cute!" He smiled in rememberance. "Oh, I wish I could hear her voice!"

_I wish I could hear Kapri's voice._ I thought with my own share of pain.

He frowned and shook his head, prompting Matron's concern, but he waved it off. "It's alright. It's just the faeries."

_I don't care if it's in the past or what. I want to hear Kapri's voice. I want to see her. That way, there may be a way to save her._ I thought desperately as everything faded to black.

**End flashback**

There was a sense of deep sadness that washed over me. _**"You can't change the past. I just found that out. When I was kidnapped, Uncle Tommy went on a journey to save me... But, because he did, he wasn't by Kat's side when she died. She wanted to show him her newborn baby..."**_

I frowned as the sadness grew tenfold and I knew that Kelly was crying.

_**"Kat kept calling out for Tommy. No matter what, I wanted him to stay in that village... But it was no use. I can no longer make it back to that moment. That's why I can only send you in someone I've met."**_ Kelly sighed deeply, full of pain. _**"I'm sorry, Shane. I'm about to disconnect. I'll try to speak to you this way, again."**_

_Sis!_ I felt her consciousness disconnect. _Kelly!!_ It was too late, and I found myself opening my eyes. I was laying half on Kapri's cot. Lifting my head, I felt tearas fill my eyes as I took in the tranquil face of Kapri. _I want to hear Kapri's voice._ I felt my eyes widen. "I can see you if I go into the past!" I cried in discovery. Standing up quickly, I looked to the ceiling. "Kelly! Kelly, can you hear me?! Send me back to the moment Kapri went into a coma!" I begged out loud.

Hearing no answer, I sighed and sat on a chair next to the cot. _Sis, why won't you answer me? I know! She's on the White SeeD ship!_ "If I find that ship, I can find Kelly! Than I can go back!" I mused out loud. _SeeD. Miko's SeeD. Maybe Matron would know where they are?_

Heading out of the infirmary, I quickly made my way out of Garden, not bothering to call on any of the others. Heading to the orphanage, I found Matron and Headmaster Kanoi where they were in the first place and spoke with Headmaster Kanoi first.

"The White SeeDs... We first came up with it to protect Kelly from Esthar. Miko piloted the ship as the captain, but over time it took on many children, becoming somewhat of an orphanage. Miko taught them well, and in time, they grew to become White SeeDs."

Matron nodded. "Those children... They are cautious and never stay in one place for long, however, they seem to have taken a liking to Centra's landscape. You would probably find them anchored in some little inlet, nearby."

Nodding thoughtfully, I gave a small smile.

"And Shane, take this letter I wrote." she stated, handing me a folded letter. "With this, they will welcome you."

(White SeeD)

It took us the majority of the day to finally find the ship, and we probably wouldn't have, if it wasn't for the large white sail sticking up that was visible across a stretch of land on a small island. They were in a tricky little inlet to get to, but we managed, and I boarded the ship with the others, holding up my hands to show I was no threat.

"...We meet again." stated a young man.

"My name is Shane." I stated with a nod. "We're SeeDs from Balamb Garden. I'd like to speak to your leader."

He nodded hesitantly. "I'm in charge here. State your business. Depending on what it is, we may ask you to leave immediately."

"...We've come to see Kelly." I stated honestly.

He and two other White SeeDs drew their weapons immediately and stared at us uncertainly.

"We come in peace." I stated as I raised my hands again, this time, holding the letter Matron had sent us with. "Miko told us you'd be here."

They relaxed instantly but exchanged looks of confusion. "Miko...how?"

"Miko is no longer under the control of Sorceress Ultimecia. She is now our ally." I informed them, holding out the letter. "So there's no reason for you to hide Kelly's whereabouts from us. We've come to take her back so we can protect her from Ultimecia." _And so I can go back and see kapri._

"...Thank you for coming..." The leader stated with a frown as he turned his back on us. "But we have no reason to believe you. Please leave."

I raised an eyebrow, clutching the letter tightly as I watched him walk away. The other two eyed us warily before returning to their duties and leaving us to our business. Shaking my head, I marched past the other SeeDs, passing children and workers, until I made it to the back of the ship and met two very surprising people.

"Wow! Long time no see, sir!" Bridge called, running forward with an excited smile.

Billy followed him. "Whoa! Look who's here! Shane, how's it goin'?"

"Can't believe you're here! Everybody doin' good, sir?" Bridge asked with a worried smile.

I looked away at that. They didn't know...

"After you guys left, the Galbadian buttheads came after us, and we barely escaped to this ship!" Billy continued, seemingly not having noticed my look.

Bridge nodded and chuckled. "I was sure we were goners, sir! Billy here, went nuts and was thinking about swimming across the sea to escape!"

Turning a deep red, Billy scowled and nudged Bridge sharply. "Hey, it was a plan!" he stated defensively. "All you were doing was whining like a big baby. 'We're gonna die! We're gonna die!' and look who jumped in first! You, you numbnuts!"

_...I don't see how these two wackos keep surviving._ I thought with a small, fond smile.

Turning to me, Billy looked around and frowned in worry. "So, hows' Kapri? Where is she?"

I think that question made everyone stiffen up and look away. It was up to me to answer. _Joy._ With a sigh, I closed my eyes. "...Kapri fought with us, against Miko. For some reason, she went unconscious after the battle, and we haven't been able to wake her since. She's resting in Garden now. I don't know what happened, I'm sorry. We couldn't protect her."

They stared at me in shock and looked to the others. I guess their faces mirrored my explanation, and Billy's eyes narrowed dangerous before he launched himself at me and grabbed my collar.

Though I was startled, and my fighting instincts kicked in, I held them back and refused to fight him.

"YOU SON-OF-A-BITCH!! What did I say?! WHAT DID I SAY, HUH?!?!? I told you to take care of her!!" Billy screamed, glaring at me with anger and worry. "That nothing better happen to her!!! Scumbag!! You pathetic, lyin' scumbag!!!"

"Billy! C'mon! Take it easy, sir!" Bridge yelled, prying him off me. "She's not dead! They just dunno what's wrong with her, that's all. Ain't that right, sir?" He asked, turning to me, hopefully. "Shane would never give up on her. Am I right, sir?"

_Never!_ Frowning, I shook my head. "We came here to get Kelly because there's a new enemy out there who's after her power. And also... If I can get her to Kapri, there's a chance we can get Kapri back."

"Really?!?" Bridge's eyes lit up and he gave a huge smile. "See, Billy?! I told you, sir! Kapri's gonna come back to us! She promised she would! We have to liberate Timber together! Don't worry, sir!"

Billy looked at us and nodded reluctantly. "...All right. But I'll say this one more time. If anything happens to Kapri again, I swear..." He sighed and shook his head before walking off.

Looking to Bridge, I pursed my lips. "Can you tell me if Kelly's here?"

"Kelly? Oh, you mean that pretty girl?" Bridge seemed to think a moment. "I think she left when some other ships came. There were soldiers on board... I know I've seen them before, oh! They were Esthar soldiers!"

I felt my eyes go wide. _What the hell's going on?!_

"And I think she was smilin' when she left."

_Smiling...?_ That didn't make any sense. If Kelly was in danger from the soldiers, why would she have been smiling?

Heading into the cabin, I held out the letter to the leader, watching as he read it slowly.

"This...is Matron's handwriting. She really gave this to you?" he asked softly.

I felt a touch of a smile hit my lips at that and nodded. "You guys call her Matron, too?"

He nodded back and gave a small smile. "Yes. Ever since we were children."

"We were raised by Matron, too. It was difficult to fight against her, but we did. Fortunately, everything turned out well." _For the most part..._ Sighing, I looked around the wooden cabin. "Miko is no longer evil. She's back to her old self, again...the kind Matron we all remember."

Saluting me with a new, respectful look, he smiled. "Shane, thank you. We owe you and Balamb Garden so much."

"Even our salute's the same." I stated out loud as I saluted him back.

He chuckled. "Matron told us it hasn't changed since SeeD was established."

With a heavy sigh, he closed his eyes. "It says in the letter that you're looking for Kelly. ...I'm sorry, but she's no longer aboard." He explained about how they ran into the Galbadian fleet just shortly after taking her from our Garden. There was a big battle over her, and soon an Esthar ship came up, joining the battle. It seemed more personally between them and Galbadia, but the White SeeDs had been caught in the center.

Another Esthar ship came and ordered the White SeeDs to evacuate their ship, but they refused, fighting off the soldiers. They managed to win the battle, and the ship was just preparing to leave when Kelly yelled something and jumped on board, sailing off with the Esthar soldiers.

"We still don't understand, to this day, why she'd do something like that. It was very much unlike her. The Esthar ships fled, and Galbadia soon after, followed them. We couldn't go after them because our ship still isn't fully repaired. I'm sorry, Shane...we couldn't protect her."

I blinked a moment at how similar our situations were and sighed with a nod. "So, Kelly's in Esthar?"

He nodded. "We believe so."

After bidding them farewell, I made my way back to the bridge of Garden, nodding to Xander as I made the decision. "We're going to Esthar."

"Oh, man..." He groaned. "Xenophobic Esthar. That terrain's no good for flying Garden."

I thought about that. "Then we'll head to FH and take the train tracks to Esthar. Set a course!"

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I realize my chapters have been what I consider normal length, a lot shorter or a lot longer. Sorry about that. I'm usually exhausted and in a hurry when I create the chapters, and then I'm too lazy to mess around with it until I can even out the lengths.

Shane is not one of my top favorite characters in PR, so please forgive me for not updating so often and if it's not as good as my other PR/FF crossovers. My muse usually revolves around Hunter and Blake, so they're likely where my strength in writing lies, although, I have been considering giving LSR a try, with a Carter/OC type fic... Anyways, I'm gonna finish this one, first.

Hope you like it.

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"To tell you the truth, I worry too much about what other people think of me. I hate that side of me..."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	38. Heading to Esthar

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : I don't think there's many more Dream Worlds with Tommy after this one. I know it'll seem rushed in some parts and clearly boring, I was exhausted, but I apologize for the shoddy job done in the Dream World section of this chapter. I found it extremely boring and unimportant but I couldn't think how to leave a lot of it out, so I tried to skim through it instead.

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(FH)

Heading down to the infirmary as we docked with FH, I nodded to Dr Shayla as she stepped out of the office and walked over to Kapri. Placing my hand under her back, I lifted her into a sitting position and wrapped her arms around my neck before pulling her onto my back and heading off.

"Let's go, Kapri. Let's go meet Kelly. She'll bring us together." I whispered as I carried her through the Garden.

I didn't bother to alert the others to my plan, so as I left Garden, I was alone. I carried Kapri along the catwalks, climbing up and down ladders, and taking her down the lift. I felt bad for leaving everyone behind, but... _Sorry everyone, but I can't keep going on like this..._

We finally made it to the railroad and I felt my eyes go wide at the clear miles of walking that had to be done. As far as I could see, all there was, was flat railroad to walk along. "It's a bit far..." I mumbled, feeling the limp weight of Kapri on my back. Looking over my shoulder to her peaceful face, I smiled. "But we'll make it."

I started off, heading down the track and being extremely grateful there were no monsters on the way. As I stated before, the track went on for miles, and after what felt like hours of walking, I managed to check my watch and groaned to realized I'd been walking for two. I looked back and saw in the far distance, the docks of FH and our Garden, and looking in the direction I was heading, I saw nothing but more track.

Where was the land? Was it really _that _far away?

My shoulders and back were beginning to ache, but I refused to give up. Hoisting Kapri a little higher on my back, I started off again and walked more. Soon, the sun began to set, making me frown. I'd set off around lunchtime, meaning there should've been about six hours of sunlight before sunset kicked in.

Slipping my arm around in front of me, I noticed it was indeed six pm and frowned deeply, realizing I'd been walking for many hours.

Once again I turned back, only this time, all I saw was miles of track behind me. Looking forward, I saw a large landmass come into view and shook my head as sweat dripped down my face. It was clearly still at least an hour of walking, and my back was about to give out.

Looking to the side, I walked over to some old crates and carefully set Kapri down against one before sitting beisde her, looking out over the ocean.

_...It's pretty far. I didn't think it would be this far... What am I doing...? Go to Esthar, find Kelly, talk to Kelly...but... There's no guarantee it'll help even if I _do_ get to talk to her. Even so, I'm..._ Heaving a heavy sigh, I turned and looked at Kapri. _I...sure have changed._

"I wonder what everyone's doing...?" I muttered out loud, feeling the need to break the silence. _They're probably laughing at me, or maybe...they're angry...? _"What do you think?" I asked the comatose Kapri. "To tell you the truth, I worry too much about what other people think of me. I hate that side of me. That's why I didn't want anyone to get to know me... I wanted to hide that side of myself. I hate it. Shane, the unfriendly, introverted guy. It made it easy for me when people thought of me that way. That's a secret between you and me, got it?"

She remained unconscious and I sighed as I closed my eyes tightly. Getting up, I kneeled in front of her and took her hands. "Kapri..." Pulling her back on to my back, I began walking once again, heading to that large landmass with a dim light of hope shining in my heart. It was a difficult walk, but I just kept repeating to myself that Kelly was there and would be able to help me.

As I drew closer and closer to the station on the edge of the landmass, I shivered as the cold air hit me and frowned at the ice-covered lanscape in front of me. I grew worried that Kapri would get sick and gently put her down, taking off my jacket and slipping it on her, before hauling her back on to my back and walk on.

It took me another hour to make it to the station at the edge of the large landmass signalling that we were near Esthar. As I approached the snowed-in, obviously abandoned station, I frowned and felt my eyes narrow to notice Dustin and Tori standing there, obviously waiting. When they saw me, they grined and walked over.

"Shane, you're late." Tori scolded with a smile.

Dustin shook his head and raised an eyebrow as they walked up to me. "Is the Princess still asleep?" he asked, his grin turning a bit forced when he looked at Kapri's face.

Tori nudged him softly and turned to me. Bending down a little, she looked closely into Kapri's fae before turning to me and smirking. "She might wake up with a kiss from the prince." she quipped.

I felt my eyes widen and face heat up as I took a quick step back. Taking a moment to collect myself, I frowned and felt my eyes narrow at them. "Is that why you came all the way here? To tell me that?" I asked dangerously. _Did they come all this way just to tease me?_

"You're going to Esthar, right?" Tori asked, turning serious. She folded her arms over her chest. "Well, we're going, too."

Dustin grinned a little and puffed his chest out with pride. "We're Miko's escort."

Miko came walking up from a little ways ahead, and I felt my eyes widen once again to just now notice her. Smiling softly at me, she nodded. "Shane. Let us go together to Esthar."

Looking around, I walked over to the station ticket building and knelt down, laying Kapri gently against the wall before standing up and walking over to Matron. "What business do you have in Esthar?" I asked, feeling a little suspicious. I knew that Sorceress Ultimecia wanted Sorceress Adel, who used to rule Esthar, and that Miko was still an open conduit for the Sorceress from the future.

Had she been possessed again?

Keeping her smile, Miko looked straight into my eyes and I relaxed to see that there was no yellow tint in her eyes. "I must go see Dr. Odine."

"Dr. Odine. You've heard the name, right?" Dustin asked me with a raised eyebrow.

"I remember..." Dr. Odine was well known for his items to suppress the magic within a sorceress. Tori had told me about when Kapri tried to help us in Galbadia. She'd had an Odine Bangle. "But, why do you need to see him?"

"Sorceress Ultimecia is alive. She can take over my body at any time." Miko replied with a shudder. "If that were to happen, I would once again bring terror. I, too, value my well-being. I want to protect myself. If it were possible, I want to be rid of the sorceress' powers. Dr. Odine may know a way. He may be able to help me."

Nodding, I walked over to Kapri and picked her up again. "...I understand. Let's go to Esthar together."

Suddenly, I heard the sound of running feet and turned to the maze-like paths up ahead of me, blinking i surprise when I saw Hunter and Marah running up to us. _So, they're _all_ here. _I thought blankly. _I guess I should've known._

"Yo, they're back." Dustin called lightly.

Tori turned to me and shrugged. "They went ahead to check the place out."

"How's it goin', Shane?" Marah asked with a grin as she walked up and looked into Kapri's face. "Is Kapri still asleep?" Grinning a little, she raised an eyebrow and lowered her voice. "Psst... Kapri sure is cute when she's sleeping."

Blinking in surprise, I turned to look at Kapri. _...She's right._ Feeling my face heating up, I glared at Marah who's eyes went wide and she began to giggle. "Whatever. So, how is it?" I asked, trying to change the subject. "Is it safe to cross?"

"Whoo! Are you blushing?!?" Marah cried in her giggles, making my face heat up even more.

"Marah, don't piss off Shane." Hunter muttered warily with a sigh. Turning to me, he frowned. "Esthar's supposed to be on this continent, right? It's supposed to be huge..." He scratched the side of his head in confusion. "I don't know why, but I can't seem to find it."

"Couldn't find it up north or down south, but we didn't look east." Marah pointed out.

And with the rock wall blocking the way west, it was the only choice left. I had Matron and Tori join me in the main group, with the others as backup, and began down the snow covered trail.

"Hello...I don't see a city." Marah whined.

Miko sighed and looked at me sadly. "It looks like we are in for a long trip."

"Everything'll be alright." Dustin boasted with a grin. "We'll be by your side, all the way!"

This made her frown in worry. "Thank you, Dustin, but remember, even in my presence you must stay alert. As long as I can be myself, everything will be alright, but if Ultimecia gets inside me again... You all know what to do."

Everyone paused and seemed to worry as the images passed through our minds. Yeah, we all knew what to do. Fight and kill her, but... Would we really be able to? Would we be able to kill our Matron, or even fight her again?

Everything was quiet for a moment until Marah, who'd run a little ways ahead, looking for Esthar, came running back. She noticed the tesion and silence and frowned. "What? WHAT?? Did I miss something?" she asked energetically. "Uh-oh. It's so quiet and the airs getting heavy. Guys... What's wrong?" she asked with a worried frown. "COME ON!!" she yelled, startling me out of my thoughts. "We're all together again! We're gonna bring back kapri! It's like a picnic! We're gonna have fun!!!"

"...Someone once told me that if you say something bad, it'll come true." I said quietly, catching everyone's attention. "I don't know if it's just a silly superstition, but right now I want to believe it. So, let's not talk about it anymore." I stated firmly, starting off, down the path and bypassing two splits to the right.

It was like a maze, with all the splitting passageways, but we soon realized that they all converged on each other again. It was a small maze. Luckily, it wasn't snowing that heavily, so our foot prints in the snow were still visible, keeping us from getting lost or going in circles.

As we made our way due east, I frowned as I noticed the dark blue sky changing to a medium orange. It wasn't immediate or startlingly quick, but as we walked, I noticed that the snow was taking on a lighter hue of orange, and everything seemed to lighten up a bit.

Looking to the sky, I felt my eyes narrow as the dark blue of the evening sky, faded into a bright orange. I looked around for the source, knowing that despite the sunset color, it wasn't the sun, and noticed no visible source.

Also, there were no birds in the sky, or wild animals roaming the lands. No breeze, and no trees, despite the fact that it wasn't always winter here.

There _were_, however, monster roaming the lands. Giant white and green striped hands that seemed to claw their way out of the ground, as well as the top half of a humanoid head of the same colors, with gaping black holes for eyes.

Marah and Hunter had taken to calling the hands 'Righty's and 'Lefty's, depending on whether or not it was a right hand or left. They even took to betting on which we'd encounter next.

"It's a Lefty!" Marah cried excitedly, jumping up and down before holding out her hand with a smug grin. "That one's mine! Pay up!"

With a frown, Hunter dug out 20 gil and handed it to her reluctantly. "The next one's _so_ mine!" he grumbled.

The rights casted powerful magic, and were good for drawing spells we didn't already have, and lefts were powerful melee attackers. The faces just sat back until the hands were destroyed, and then they'd lunge forward, ripping out of the ground to reveal a gaping hole in place of the mouth. Even as they rose at least three feet out of the ground, there was no bottom to the jaw.

They had powerful bites, but were easily defeated.

Otherwise, there were monsters that we'd faced before, that were easy to beat. Especially with Matron's strong magics on our side.

Soon, we'd made it to a giant ledge that overlooked a vast, seemingly enless maze of the exact same type we'd just wandered through. Below us, we could see tons more of the hands and faces, along with giant monster skeleton-type monsters that we'd never seen before. It was one _huge_ monster-infested maze!

There was a rumbling beside us, and we spun to find a pile of bones shaking violently before the floated up to assemble one of those monsters from below. It let out a gasping roar and clawed at the air with deformed and odd-lengthed claws, and stared at us with gaping black holes for eyes, tiny red lights showing inside.

"It is an Abadon!" Miko called in a warning. "An Undead monster!"

"Use recovery-related magics and items on it!" I called with a nod, taking several steps back as it stumbled towards us. Marah, Hunter and Dustin all stood close together, in front of me, acting as a shield, and I quickly placed Kapri down gently, against a rock ledge a little ways away from the battle.

Heading back, I closed my eyes and summoned Cerberus.

A loud howl was heard as the sky turned black. A full moon was seen, along with a mountain top and a giant, three-headed dog on top of it. The dog jumped and flew through the air to land right in front of us before all three heads lifted into an eery howl, and I felt the effects of Double and Triple being cast on us.

Dustin and Marah nodded with grins to each other, and Marah reached into her pouch for a phoenix down. Dustin cast three Curagas on it and Marah followed up by using the phoenix down.

Unfortunately, it didn't work. It must've missed.

The battle was still fairly simple. With everyone double and triple casting Curagas on it, it fell in no time. Staggering to the side, I watched as it was about to fall over the ledge, but instead, it fell _against_ the air and bounced off it before stumbling back over a cliff behind it and falling.

Frowning, I watched as the _air_ seemed to shimmer before a brief glimps of a ladder was shown. "...There's something there." I muttered, walking over to it. I touched it carefully and jumped back a bit as a man-sized man-made hole appeared a little ways above us, as well as the ladder.

It was pretty odd, seeing a hole and ladder set into mid-air, but I knew better.

"WHOA!!!" Dustin yelled, his eyes going wide. "The hell is that?! It's just like, some kind of hole in mid air!"

I looked around carefully, before walking over and picking up Kapri again. Going to the ladder, I began to climb. "It looks like the only way." I called lightly over my shoulder, keeping a careful grip on Kapri so she didn't fall.

(Esthar)

Crawling through the hole, we came out in a large, metal room with a control panel standing at one side of the wall. I carefully walked over to it and raised an eyebrow. Pressing a few buttons, I watched as an image of the orage sky came up and looked at the description. "...Camoflage?"

"Whoa!" Dustin softly stated, standing beisde me, as he took in the image of the barren snow field we'd just gone through. "Hey... I got it now! They use these panels, all lined up, to hide the city! Yeah, that's why we couldn't see anything!"

"Uh-huh." Hunter stated in a 'duh' tone before he looked at me. "So, what're they hiding?"

I shrugged and walked into the next room. "I don't know, either. I'm sure we'll find out, soon." I stated, turning to watch as the others entered the room.

As soon as they did, it shook a little, causing us all to stagger, and I looked around in surprise as it began to move. I realized we were standing in a large elevator and somehow, it seemed able to tell when we were all aboard and set off to...well, to wherever it was going.

"Oh geez, whatever." Hunter mumbled with a roll of his eyes.

_I don't know what I'm doing, or where I am. What if this doesn't work? Will Kelly even still be in Esthar when we get there? I don't even know if we'll ever _get_ to Esthar._ I looked at Kapri, whom I'd carefully laid in the center of the elevator floor. _But... I don't care. _"I'm not turning back now." I muttered quietly. _Now when there's a chance..._

The elevator shook again and came to a reluctant halt.

_It...stopped?_ I thought in confusion, looking around. _It that... Is that it?_

"Well Shane, what're we gonna do?" Hunter asked me with a raised eyebrow.

_Why ask me?_ I thought back. Leader or not, hell if I knew what was going on about now! _I don't care at this point. Nothing's gonna surprise me._ "What else? Let's go." I stated, pointing to a door that opened up in the opposite wall.

We walked into another room and I sighed as it shook and started up, revealing it to be another elevator. Seeing a panel on the wall, I touched the surface and gasped as the wall faded away. With wide eyes, I took in the scene that met me, rethinking that I'd thought earlier about nothing surprising me.

I'd accidentally set off the camoflage setting, making the walls transparent.

What lay before us was a massive city. Easily, we could see why it was called 'high-tech'. There were tubes running along over the streets, people running through them. It seemed they acted like sidewalks, and since they were suspended above the roads, cars couldn't hit them in accidents. It seemed that was the main way of travel, other than the cars I spotted hovering over the streets as they 'drove' by. There were the occasssional normal car, but they were few and far between.

People were dressed in lose, flowing robes. The women's were more intricately designed and formfitting. For either gender, it seemed white was a popular color.

The buildings seemed to go on forever, highways and lower roads all over with tubes running along side them. There was not one tree, and the sky was blue, despite the fact that it was night. No birds flew by, there were no bushes or parks.

"THE HELL IS THIS?!?!" Dustin yelled at the top of his lungs as his jaw dropped and his eyes widened.

Hunter nodded dumbly with wide eyes as well. "Geez! Will you look at that!" he cried, watching as railings appeared and the elevator continued along them, taking us over Esthar.

"Judging from their technogoloy, they must know we're here." I mused out loud with a frown, when I felt a dizzy spell hit me. _Not now._ Placing Kapri on the ground, I knelt beside her. "It's possible we might encounter some hostility, so stay alert." I ordered, shaking my head when the dizzy spell hit me. _No, Kelly... Not now._ I mentally begged. I felt myself getting weaker and felt my frown deepen. _This...isn't good._

Next thing I knew, the ground was coming at me quickly.

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Ok I really need a new keyboard. My return button sticks 75 percent of the time. Half the buttons I hit I have to pound to get them to work, and then they often stick... Yeah. I need a new Keyboard. (Sighs)

Also, I will not be home for a few days, meaning I won't be able to work on this fic (seeing as my disks won't work for some stupid reason), so I have kept at least one chapter not posted so I have something to post when I come back.

Anyways, despite the shoddy job, I hope you liked it.

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"Oh...my sweet Kell...you make your Uncle so happy!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	39. Yet Another Dream World

**Disclaimer** : I don't own anything.

**Note** : Ok, this is the shoddy bit I was talking about. There were just parts I got stuck at, but I broke through it forcefully, because if I didn't I don't know if I ever would've gotten past this part in the fic.

Still...sorry.

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(With Tommy, Normal POV)

Tommy, Zack and Jason were standing in the center of an underground laboratory, being outnumbered by a large number of Esthar soldiers. There was also a Moomba there, and a short, old man with long black hair and wire-rimmed glasses in a lab coat.

They stood on a narrow catwalk over a seemingly endless abyss, that was lined with panels. There was an elevator at one side, and a door leading to that large, green ruin that was previously seen floating over Esthar.

"The skinny one and the big one, head down to Lunatic Pandora!" one of the guard yelled, pointing to Zack and Jason. "You're gonna stay there and work! The rest of you, get back to work!"

Zack and Jason were forced to leave, heading into the unknown and leaving Tommy with a nasty guard, another worker, and the Moomba.

The poor Moomba looked weak and skinny, staggering a little as it walked to it's station and secured a safety rope around it's waist.

"Don't roam around and no talking!" the guard ordered as Tommy sighed and rubbed his stomach as he knelt and picked up a wrench, setting to work on a panel.

"I'm hungry..." he muttered absently, rubbing his stomach some more.

The guard stomped up to his station and glared at him. "You! I said no talking! You're such a wimp! You were fed three days ago! When I was your age, I worked all day and night...without sleep!"

As the guard stomped off, Tommy's mind shot to his friends. Zack and Jason weren't really the 'Do-as-you're-told' types, but they did go along peacefully enough. "I wonder if Zack and Jason are workin', too...?" he quietly mused.

Unfortunately, the guard heard him and stomped over again. "No talking! How many times do I have to-"

The sound of a chime cut him off and Tommy jumped up happily. "Oh, meal time!"

"You keep working!" the guard quickly ordered with a sneer. "That's what you get for opening your big mouth. That beast keeps working, too!"

"You can't be serious!" Tommy yelled angrily, looking at the poor, starving Moomba. "My job will be done in two or three hours, tops! His won't be done for days!" How could they be so cruel?! The Moomba never said or did anything to them!

"He just won't be fed for a few days." the guard said with a shrug. "If he wants to eat, he should learn to work faster."

Another guard came from the doorway that Tommy's friends had been taken through and frowned. "Hey, give me a hand with the big guy!"

"Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone!" the guard ordered with a sneer. "The camera's watching you." He then walked off, following the other guard and allowing Tommy a moment of relief.

Looking at the Moomba, he noticed it stagger again and frowned as he knelt beside it. "You all right? You look exhausted." It was true. There was bags under it's tired blue eyes and it seemed to yawn every now and then, which was pretty cute if you imagined a lion cub yawning. They just had that type of face. "Do they feed you all right? Got a fever or something? Or you scared of heights?" he continued in worry as the Moomba seemed to gaze dully around the room.

It gave two short, hesitant purrs before picking up a wrench and working on a panel next to a drop off.

"Grr grr?" Tommy repeated, not realising how funny he looked. "Your stomach's going 'grr grr'?"

There was a laugh and Tommy turned to find the other worker laughing before he looked at him with a kind smile. "That's funny. I think that thing's 'grr grr' was it's way of saying 'thank you'. You know, you're the first one to actually care about his well-being. Those Moombas get worked to death for no reason, and only get half the food and sleep comapred to us humans."

"Experiment! Experiment!" the voice shouted over the intercom. "Let's just do this!"

There was a massive tremor through the entire room before it settled down.

The short, older man from before took the elevator down and ran to Lunatic Pandora. "Bahh! It iz a failure!" he shouted angrily as he ran.

The Moomba seemed to move and Tommy watched as it looked around before standing. "Huh? What's up? You need a tool or somethin'?" When the Moomba nodded, he smiled and stood. "You wait right here and I'll go get it." he mentioned as the Moomba crawled back over the ledge of the path and hung on to the railing. He picked up a screwdriver and was about to take it back over, when the guard came to the door and called to him.

"Hey you! over the by elevator! Go up and get one of the guards! Tell 'em it's an emergency!" he ordered.

"Right away!" Tommy answered instinctively. _Emergency? I wonder if it's Zack and Jason?_

"Now!" the guy yelled before taking off.

"Oh, right!' Tommy was about to get on the elevator when he remembered the tool and quickly turned to the precariously positioned Moomba. "Oh, here, catch!" he called, tossing the tool towards the Moomba.

It reached out for the weapon but lost it's grip on the railing, falling over the ledge with a squeak. Tommy cried out and rushed to the railing, managing to grab it's paws and bring it back over to the path. "Geez! That was too close! I'm so glad..." He paused and shook his head, feeling the fear fading. "So...glad." He felt horribly guilty for almost knocking the poor Moomba off the railing, but from the look on the other workers face, and the Moomba's face, he guessed he did something right.

"You're such a...nice guy." the other man stated in mild shock. "Not many guys like you these days. You seem like you'd be a good candidate for our leader."

"Leader?" Tommy questioned in confusion.

He nodded. "That's right. A lot of us are dissatisfied with the way Adel is ruling Esthar. We maybe be disorganized now, but someday we'll gether our forces and remove Adel from power. We're over-throwing the ruler of the country. A sorceress with immense powers. A half-baked plan would never work. We're waiting for our moment to strike... Most of us involved with the Adel resistence are specialists. It's easy to research ways to fight Adel, but... There's no one to lead the movement." He sighed and looked around with a frown. "That's our current situation. We've been looking for someone like you... Someone who's strong and courageous."

_Strong...and courageous?_

"Hey!" the guard was back and he wasn't happy. "Did you go tell them?" Looking at us, he frowned deeply. "What're you doing?!" Walking up to the Moomba, he took in the safety cord that was looped over the railing. "You're up to no good again, aren't you?" he demanded, raising his hand to strike the poor Moomba.

Jumping up, Tommy grabbed the guard's arm and glared at him. "Stop it!" he ordered.

He dispatched the guard with ease, only to have another take the elevator down and grab his arm angrily. "Don't move!" the guard ordered with a glare.

"Darn it... I did it again." Tommy cursed quietly. With a groan, he shook his head. "Well, too late now." Grabbing the guard back, he held him away from the elevator and turned to the worker and Moomba. "Get on and go!"

They hesitated a moment before doing as he commanded and leaving him to the guard.

Zack and Jason walked through the door and Tommy grinned in relief. "Zack, Jason! Great timing!" Then a guard followed after them with a gun pointed to Zack's back. "Or...should I say bad timing?"

"Keep moving!" he ordered them.

Jason rolled his eyes and Tommy let go of his guard, backing over to them with a shrug. "It's not so bad. 2 heads are better than one, and 4 heads are better than two."

Jason gave him a confused look and Zack raised an eyebrow. "...So, who's the fourth one? Don't tell me...you're starting to hallucinate." he groaned.

Getting an idea, Tommy grinned and nodded. "Yeah, I can just see it..." Kneeling on the ground, off to the side, he let his eyes widen in 'surprise' and acted relieved. "Oh...my sweet Kell...you make your Uncle so happy!" he cried happily.

Sending silent signals to the others, he made sure they were ready, and on the silent count of three, they attacked the guards, once again, managing to take them out with ease.

"JAAAIIIIIIILLLLLL BREAK!" Tommy roared with a grin as he and the others boarded the elevator and took it up. Sneaking past the security guard, he managed to catch a snippet of conversation from between the short man and a taller, younger man.

"Dr. Odine, to use Lunatic Pandora as a weapon, you'd need something massive to move it. And you are researching that now?" The man asked with wide eyes. Chuckling a little, he sighed. "How do you come up with such bold ideas? I could never come up with such brilliant ideas."

"I forgot." the Dr. answered with his thick accent.

They managed to get out of the office and bid farewell to the Moomba before talking to the man at the entrance. It turned out he'd waited for them. As they spoke, the younger man, Dr. Odine's assistant, came walking out of the lab with a troubled frown.

Upon seeing him, Tommy, Zack and Jason all got in defensive stands, but relaxed as the man from before assured them he was an active member of the 'Adel Resistence, or AR'.

"The Dr's done it again." the man groaned in worry. "He's found a new toy that he prefers over a big one like Lunatic Pandora. Some child named Kelly."

"Kelly?!" Tommy yelled, running up to the man.

He nodded in confusion. "You know her?"

Tommy nodded frantically. "Where is she? Where's Kelly?!" he demanded hurriedly.

"Dr. Odine would probably know her whereabouts." the assistant put in with a nod to the building.

"We're going back, then." Tommy said determinedly.

The men didn't want to let them go, but they insisted, so the man they saved from below told them that they'd help any way they could. It would be practically impossible for the three of them to get around Esthar, or find Kelly without help.

Tommy hesitantly agreed. "Fine then! We accept your help. In return, we'll help you with your 'Anti-Azel' movement or whatever."

Jason rolled his eyes and shook his head and ack gave an annoyed sigh. "It's ADEL." he corrected.

"ANYWAY, let me go save Kelly and I'll take you up on that." Tommy said.

"Is this Kelly your special someone?" the man from below asked curiously.

Tommy grinned and nodded. "Yeah, you could say that."

"Tommy, she's like a daughter to you." Zack pointed out.

He shrugged. "Hey, she's still a 'lady'. Imagine how she'd react if she found out I was talkin' about her like a baby! I say 'special someone' out of respect...and fear."

"I see..." Zack grinned. "You have a point. It's better not to make her angry. Remember the 'J-incident'?"

Tommy shuddered. "Yeah, she put jam in my shoes."

"You were almost in tears."

The three made their way back to the lab, but the Dr had disappeared from his station, so taking the elevator down, they found him on the level below. "Hey!" Tommy rushed forward and cornered Dr. Odine. "Where's Kelly?!"

One of the guards they'd knocked out before, entered from behind them and sneered angrily. "I can't believe you guys came back!" he cried as another guard joined him and they rushed forward.

In his blind haste to get the answers from the Dr, Tommy kicked their asses in seconds. "Where is she?!" he demanded.

"Vat are you saying?!" the Dr asked in confusion, trying to act innocent. "I do not know any...Kelly." Seeing that they weren't buying it, he laughed nervously. "...Ok, I vas lying! I know a Kelly!" He called before rushing off.

Spinning on his heel, Tommy raced forward and cornered him in the elevator with Zack and Jason. "Well? I swear you better tell me..."

The elevator doors opened and Dr. Odine rushed out and out of the building.

"Wait" Tommy demanded, managing to get a hold of the Dr. "Tell me where she is!"

"...In O Labs." he said quickly. "Kelly iz there." he stated before squirming free and rushing off.

Managing to get the directions from their new allies, Tommy and the others managed to hop a car to Esthar and headed through the town until they found the Lab that he was talking about. They easily dispatched the guards that confronted them, and searched for a way to get inside and unlock the doors.

They found a window that looked into a large, green room, and in the center of that room was a crying Kelly. Her hair was mussed and her dress was torn, showing she wasn't treated that well.

Upon seeing her, Tommy felt tears come to his eyes. "Kell. Kelly! KELLY!! He screamed, pounding on the glass, but she didn't show any sign of hearing him. "Dammit! She can't hear me!"

Looking around, he checked the control panels, but none in the room seemed to help any, so he headed upstairs, dispatching more of the Esthar soldiers before finding a panel that unocked the door.

Making his way back down, he raced into the room without a second thought and scooped up the clearly terrified little girl. "Kelly!"

"Uncle Tommy!" she cried happily, hugging him tight.

He bit his hip, thinking back to the heavily pregnant Kat who was waiting for them back in WinHill and he gave the little redhead a kiss on the forehead. "Sorry I'm a little late, but..."

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Ok, shorter chapter because I had it all in one but then realized it was like twice as long as it should be, so I broke it into two.

Hope you liked it.

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"Hmm...very interesting... This iz quite interesing indeed... So this iz vat happens..."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi.


	40. Splitting up Again

**Disclaimer** : Trust me, if I owned them, I'd have much better things to do than sit at home for hours and write fanfics. Since I'm obviously sitting at home, writing fanfics, I obviously don't own them, huh?

(Hands out Blake plushie to **JuseaPeterson**) Glad you like the fic so far. LOL.

**Note** : Yep, like the title says, they're splitting up...again. But this time, you'll see their reasons. This is going to be good. I just hope I can capture the script ok.

Also, if you'd like to remember when I described Lunatic Pandora before, go back to the chapter (I forgot which one) Where Tommy, Jason and Zack were chased out of a large green ruin by Esthar soldiers.

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(With Shane and The Others, Shane's POV)

As I groaned and opened my eyes, I heard a sigh. "Back from your adventure, Shane?"

It was Hunter. He sounded bored and I wondered how long I'd been out. Were we still moving? Had the others been waiting for me?

"There's something coming!" Dustin called warily.

Sitting up slowly and rubbing my head, I opened my eyes and blinked a few times to clear them. It seemed we had stopped and were standing idly on a platform right outside the limits of all the buildings. As Dustin called, there was a car, well, more of a limo, approaching.

As it pulled up, two ment in white robes exited and walked over to us. As soon as they laid eyes on Miko, they paused and looked worried.

"Sorceress Miko?" one man asked warily.

"Yes. We have come to see Dr. Odine." she said kindly.

They seemed to relax somewhat, but exchanged puzzled looks at her words. "...Please explain what this is regarding." the second man politely requested.

"Yes, of course." she replied with a nod and smile.

I'd picked Kapri back up and walked forward then, feeling my heart swell with hope. "I need to see Kelly! Where is she?!" I demanded hurridly, not even thinking that I might come across as a threat, or that I was being rude to Matron.

"...Kelly?" Now they both looked worried.

"Shane, calm down." Matron ordered sternly, acting like the Matron I remembered. "Trust me. Let me handle this." she insisted softly.

"Please come with us." the first man inclined his head to the limo.

Getting into the limo, we were driven along the long path that led to the city, and I was amazed at just how long it was taking us, by car, to get into the city.

"Geez." Hunter whistled quietly. "Just how long is this thing?"

"We'll be arriving at the Presidential Palace shortly." one man informed us politely.

We drove up to a massive building and I felt my jaw drop at the sheer size. We were led inside and taken to a private room, where we met with the Presidential Aide and Miko told him her story.

After what felt like an hour of sitting next to Kapri, whom I'd laid out on a couch, I sighed. I'd taken back my coat, seeing as it was too hot for her to wear it.

"...That is the reason I am here. I wish to be free of Sorceress Ultimecia's control." Miko finished after a long while.

"Zat will be easy." came an all too familiar, irritating and whiny voice as a rather short, old man hobbled into the room, dressed in a long white lab coat and glasses. "We just exorcise the sorceress. There iz nothing Odine cannot do!"

"I leave everything in your hands." Miko said with a grateful smile.

The Presidential Aide turned to me and I stood up wearily. "So, you wish to see Kelly."

Frowning, I lost it and ran to the Dr, grabbing his collar tightly and glaring into his beady black eyes. "Where is she?! I have to bring Kapri to her! We need to see Kelly, now!" I demanded in a frenzy, shaking him as I felt tears come to my eyes.

He raised an eyebrow at my actions. "Do as he says. I give ze permission." he said to the Aide.

"...Very well."

"But under one condition." Dr. Odine turned to me and stared at me calmly as I released him. "You must allow me to study the girl."

_Study?_ I didn't like the sound of that. How dare he make her sound like a lab experiment! I wanted to argue, but he didn't seem to want ot hurt her, just observe her, and if it got me closer to Kelly, sooner...

"You'll need time to prepare before you can meet Kelly." the Aide put in.

Miko sighed and turned to me with a reassuring nod. "Take the offer, Shane."

"You better not do anything to hurt Kapri!" I warned.

He walked over to her and began observing her. "Hmm...very interesting... This iz quite interesing indeed... So this iz vat happens..." he mumbled to himself.

_This is...what happens...?_ Did Dr. Odine know what was wrong with Kapri?

Hesitantly, I headed out into the city to make my way to the Lunar Gate, or whatever it was called. Something about meeting us there...to get to Kelly? Some people mentioned that if you followed the different colored paths on the roads, you could find your way around, easier. Or if you took certain tubes, Lifters as they were called. Then others mentioned how the Lunar Gate was far away and it would be best to rent a car for it.

Most people were wary or excited to see us, foreigners, walking their streets, and I felt like I really stuck out. It wasn't a feeling I enjoyed. We got stares everywhere we went, and I was almost tempted to buy one of those robes to blend in more.

Some even went on about how the President was rarely ever in. He was apparently a little absent-minded but an all around nice guy.

"Dr. Odine doesn't care much about people. Especially if they're test subjects." a sentry put in, apparently hearing about Kapri. "You'd better make sure nothing happens to your girl." he finished before walking off.

Feeling my eyes narrow dangerously, I glared at the ground and clenched my fists. _I'll kill him if anything happens to Kapri._ I thought darkly before I took a deep breath and continued on.

Heading to the Lunar Gate, I mentall prepared myself for whatever was going to happen next. Whatever it was, I had a feeling something really bad was going to happen.

(Lunar Gate)

It took us about an hour by car, and when we got there, we learned we'd been expected. As we walked with one of the staff, there was a loud, familiar bark, and I turned to find Angelo running in. He stopped at my feet and looked up at me with the biggest, saddest blue eyes I'd ever seen, his long deep brown coat shining as he whimpered and bowed his head.

Kneeling down, I felt guilty for taking Kapri away. I reached out and pet his head a little, feeling a smile tug at my lips. _Don't worry. I'll bring Kapri back._ I thought as I got up and nodded to the staff member. "...Lead the way."

We made our way into a large room with a rocket inside, and I noticed a man-sized doorway that led into the rocket. An older man came rushing forward and bowed. "Are you the ones taking off?"

_Taking off? I guess so._ "Yes." I answered unsurely.

The leader underwent some longwinded explanation about 'cold sleep'. Basically, it was that we'd be put in cryogenic statis for the trip that would normally last about a day and a half. By the time we woke up, we would be there. The rocket was just for launch measures and when it made it into space, it would open up to reveal the three pods we'd be in.

We were going to a space station.

Apparently, Kelly had been taken into space to keep her safe from Ultimecia. That's where we were going. Kapri had already undergone 'cold sleep' and was in her capsule. That just left two others.

Well, ok, one. There was no way in hell I was letting her go into space alone. I was going for sure. Question was, who would I take with me?

"Shane, man, let me protect Matron!" Dustin cried with big eyes. Despite being adopted, he'd always been extremely close to her. "Please!"

I briefly flashed back to previous times we'd split up and how I'd put Tori or Marah in charge because I didn't trust in Dustin. As much as he spoke big, he's grown since then.

...and so have I.

"Alright. I trust you, Dustin." I said surely with a nod. "Tori, you'll come with me."

She nodded and stepped into the chamber. She disappeared as a mist enveloped it, and when it was done, the door opened to show the chambe empty. I was a little nervous, but guessed that she'd already been taking into her capsule. With a sigh, I headed into the chamber and closed my eyes, gritting my teeth at the sickly sweet smell that flooded my senses before everything went dark.

(Dustin's POV)

Heading out of the room as their capsules were shot into space from a large canon, I sighed. I kind of felt happy that Shane chose me to pretty much lead this mission, but at the same time, I was worried. What even happened to Kapri, in the first place?

So many questions. I was so confused.

"Man." I groaned with a shake of my head. "I hope everything goes all right."

"They'll be fine!" Marah exclaimed with a grin, patting me on the shoulder.

Hunter nodded. "I'm sure they're in good hands."

"Let us pray for their safe return." Miko said quietly with a reassuring smile on her face. After a moment, she turned and looked at the rest of us. "Ok, are we ready to do?"

_Not really._ I thought nervously. But then I reminded myself that Shane trusted me and I needed to do this for him.

Angelo, who'd been walking with us, let out a low howl and took off outside.

"Heeey, come back!" Marah called, chasing after him.

"...What's up with her...?" Hunter asked in confusion, scratching his head.

Heading outside after Angelo, I sighed as I realized I was chasing after a dog when we had more important things to do. But I allowed myself to relax when I then realized...so were the others.

As we stood outside, I noticed a vaguely familiar, giant, green structure floating over head, heading in the direction of Esthar. I tried to figure out how I knew it, but I couldn't.

"Say, isn't the city in that direction?" Hunter called over the roar od the propellors that held the massive structure in the air.

"Dr. Odine might be in trouble!" Marah cried in worry.

"Let's go then!" I called urgently.

(Esthar)

Luckily we had a rented car nearby and we sped off back to Esthar. By the time we made it back, I watched as many people either stared in shock and awe, or ran around in a terrified frenzy as the structure approached the city slowly.

Some people went on about how excited they were to se something so unusual. Others mentioned how frightened they are, and still others pointed out the Esthar symbol on the bottom, where the green rock was outlined with black metal.

Then, we learned that it seemed to be messing with electronics. The Lifters were all on the fritz. Some wouldn't work at all, while others hovered in the air, and even others whizzed by in the tunnels. The ones for walking sucked up anyone that got too close, or shot them out of them with powerful blasts of air.

It seemed that walking along the streets was the safest way to get around.

We found a man sitting on the ground with a dazed look on his face, and when I knelt at his side, I heard him muttering to himself. "Lunatic...Pandora. It reminds me of...Esthar's old days...under Sorceress Adel's rule." he muttered shakily.

We made our way to the Lab where Dr. Odine was rumored to have gone. As we made our way through it, I found them in the same room Tommy had used to free Kelly...at least, from what Shane said. There was large computer panels lining either side of the wall, and a projector built into the center of the floor. Then there was a large window that overlooked the room she'd been held in so many years ago.

"Why iz Lunatic Pandora here now? Who iz moving zat thing?" Odine questioned quietly.

His assistant sighed. "The Galbadians, sir. They salvaged it from the ocean floor. We must sound the alert in the cty, now!"

Odine shook his head. "It will not attack us. The city iz not ze target."

"I hope so...I hope you're right." his assistant mumbled in worry.

"But 'Tears' Point'...hmm...?" Odine seemed lost in thought. He looked at us, startled, and gave a huge smile. "So we meet again. This iz exciting!"

I frowned deeply and shook my head. "What's so exciting about this?!" I demaned angrily, stuck on what he'd said about Galbadia. "This...and that-that... What's Galbadia got to do with all this?!"

"It's been a long time since I last saw Lunatic Pandora." he continued with an awed sigh.

Growling a little, I stared out a indow at the distant ruin that floated closer and closer to us. _Lunatic... That's what Zack and Jason saw. That...That thing they were chased out of._ I thought with a frown. "That Lunatic...whatever, that big thing... What the hell is that?!" I shouted, glaring at the Dr. "What the hell is going on?!"

"Oh!" He seemed startled and grinned. "You vant to hear my story? Zat iz nice." He seemed quite pleased. "I would be happy to tell you."

Unfortunately, for us. He launched into a long-winded explanation about how he'd been experimenting with it and researching it since it was first excavated many year ago. Apparently, that thing was his 'baby' and all his spare time was spent on it.

He droned on and on about information that was probably useful and important, but I could really care less and growled impatiently.

"I don't care about that!" I finally yelled, snapping as my nerves finally broke. Glaring angrily at him, I stomped up to the shorter man and stared down into his beady black eyes. "What's gonna happen? What do we do?!"

He opened his mouth to say something but I gave him a glare and continued. "The enemy's comin', right? And there's no time! We'll so something about it! Just tell us what to do!" I ordered as I panted for breath and clenched my fists. "Make it short." I added pointedly as he seemed about to go off on another long-winded explanation. _Man, this guy's full of hot air!_

He began to mutter about how 'short was bad' and 'this was very bad' before he hit a button on a computer console, bringing up a 3-D holographic map of Esthar, with Lunatic Pandora floating over it.

Dr. Odine described where it would enter the city, the amount of time it would take it to reach certain points where we could board it, and how long the entire trip over Esthar would take. He also made a note of pointing out that monsters would run rampant, as they were drawn to the ruin, _powerful_ monsters at that, and that Galbadian soldiers would likely be guarding the entrance.

He then explained exactly where these 'contact' points were and when the ruin would pass by, meaning, where and when our chances of getting on baord were good.

"Ze problem iz-"

"Alright, alright!" I cut him off with another glare, setting the timer on my watch and taking a small map of Esthar to help us along the way. "We gotta get goin'!" I added, seeing as he was about to protest. _Doesn't this guy ever run out of air?!_

"I vant to talk some more..." He pouted sadly as he looked at the ground. "Ze culprit iz not Galbadia.." he almost whispered with a worried frown.

_Not Galbadia...?_ Staring at him pointedly, I folded my arms over my chest and raised an eyebrow, letting him know he had my attention, if even for a moment.

"You know zat monsters come falling from ze moon, not very often it happens." I must've looked pretty clueless, because his eyes shot open wide. "You don't know?! Pandora has an effect on ze moon. Zat may be ze immediate problem, not Galbadia."

_Effect on the moon? Immediate problem...?_

"Tears' Point and Lunatic Pandora, together, will maximize this effect." he finished with a frown to the approaching ruin.

Running out of that lab, we stopped as we noticed the blue sky had turned a threatening orange. Monsters we'd seen and faced before, as well as ones we hadn't, were running loose. And one of the tubes shot a small group of Esthar soldiers across our view at literally break-neck speed.

I winced, knowing what their fate would be when they reached the other side.

Some people lay injured on the street, others were being attacked by monster,s and still others were running for their lives. Some Esthar soldiers were muttering about how the Galbadians repelled them from the ruin, and I groaned as I watched it pass over the city.

I could see monsters hanging from it, falling off in places around the town to go after the villagers, and I sighed as I led our group forward after the ruin.

Managing to catch it at the first contact point, it was where two sky paths crossed, and I watched in horrified awe as the massive ruin came floating slowly in our direction, along side the road we stood on. It was clearly naturally made, glowing green stone that was impossible to see through. There was a black metal base with the insignia of Esthar on the side, and I frowned at a small door that approached.

So far, we'd run into Elvorets, and many other monsters we'd faced before, including Marah and Hunter's 'Lefty's and Righty's. But...where were the Galbadians?

"Oh...man..." I groaned, seeing the sheer size of this thing. It was easily five times taller than any of the skyscrapers in Esthar, and could probably house a small city inside.

Miko stayed quiet as her eyes narrowed in worry and she stared at Lunatic Pandora.

Hunter's eyes widened and his jaw dropped as the thing came closer and closer. "We're supposed to board that thing?!" he demanded incredulously.

Suddenly, the door on the side opened up, and two Galbadian soldiers jumped down, rushing towards us.

Hunter shot one with his rifle and Marah blasted the other with a Thundaga spell, taking them out immediately. Once they were out of the way, we rushed forward and boarded Lunatic Pandora.

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(Scratches head idlly, then looks around blankly) God, but I'm bored! LOL I wonder if I can go find... (Looks around again and grins as I spot a familiar figure) Found you!! (Runs and glomps Hunter) Didn't think you'd get away so easily, did you? (Pulls out lasoo rope and ropes blake around the waist, tossing him to **Jusea**.) Much better than a plushie, isn't he? (Clings to Hunter's back) Giddy-up! Whoo-hoo! Yeehaw cowboy! I could ride him all...never mind. My mind went into the gutter just now, forget I said anything... (Blushes and buries my face into Hunter's neck, swatting him in the shoulder when he begins to laugh)

ANYWHO! Uhhhh... Oh, don't worry, you'll find out what happens to Shane and Kapri really soon, as well as what happened to Kapri in particular. (evil grin)

Hope you like it, and please excuse my bored ramblings. LOL.

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"The Lunar Cry..."

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R+R please. There's NS plushies in it for ya! LOL.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	41. Lunar Cry

**Disclaimer** : Ok, that's enough now. Seriously. If I owned it, I would've advertised to the world by now. I can seriously guarantee you I'll never own it, so enough with the stupid disclaimers! I DON"T OWN/NEVER HAVE OWNED/NEVER WILL OWN POWER RANGERS. Ok? Get it? Got it? Good! No more disclaimers for the rest of my fic. I don't own it and you know it!

**Note** : Ok, for parts of this, I was going for an eerie setting. I hope you like how it turned out, despite the fact that I left out lots of useless dialog. Also, for those FF fans out there who might read my fic, they'll notice that the thung with Lunatic Pandora and Tears' Points didn't happen so much like this, but I changed it to add to the effect. So, nya!

Ok, facts recap.

Miko was possessed by a Sorceress from the Future named Ultimecia. Ultimecia want's Kelly for her power.

Ultimecia can possess anyone, but really only spiritually inhabit another sorceress. Examples... The people of Deling and their sudden 'love' of Sorceress Miko. Another person I named in this fic (Can you tell me who? Blake and Hunter plushies to anyone who can!). Those were all possessed. Sorceress Miko, and future women, was/will be 'inhabited' by Ultimecia's spirit, turning evil.

A sorceress can pass on their powers to another sorceress only. Some may also _become_ sorceress, though how is not entirely clear.

Adel is still alive, as is Ultimecia. Miko is alive, but is supposedly undergoing a treatment to get rid of her powers, but... Oh wait, never mind. You'll find out soon. (Grins wickedly)

Kapri is unconscious for some, strange reason, and has been since their battle with Miko. But something's gonna happen REALLY soon now!

Blake has disappeared and no one knows where he is.

...I'm going to stop here before it ends up 6 pages long. LOL.

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(Lunatic Pandora)

Landing with a hard thump on the green stone ground, I looked around with wide eyes, immediately recognizing this place. "Yo! This is where Tommy an' them went in the Dream World!" I cried in recognition.

Marah looked around thoughtfully before looking to one spot in particular and nodded. "Heeeey, yeah! Isn't that were he found that key, but had a hole in his butt and lost it again?"

Blinking a moment at her, I looked to where she was pointing and noticed some metal debris. _She's right..._ I thought, realizing that place was where he found one of the two keys he lost.

We walked along the path, pointing out many places we recalled from our Dream World experiences with Tommy and them.

"...And that's where Tommy used the fuses to blow up the rocks!" Marah cried with a grin.

I couldn't help but grin back at her enthusiasm and nodded, showing her I remembered what she was talking about.

Soon, we made it to a large, unfamiliar room and stopped as we took in the advances, mechanical nature of it. A large, yellow machine dropped down from the roof and beeped loudly as a single, red eye focused on us.

"...The hell is that?!" I cried, not remembering it from our past experiences. Obviously, Tommy had never made it to this room, but what did it mean? Where were we and what awaited us inside? Shaking my head, I fixed my gloves and took a single step forward. "Well, no time to be ponderin'... Let's get it!" I cried, racing forward.

Suddenly, I felt my body freeze and stared in shock as I was lifted off the ground. Startled cries from my friends, and our Matron, informed me that they too, were suffering the same thing.

"What the...?! My body...I c-can't move!" I shouted as I struggled against the invisible hold on me.

I felt myself flying and closed my eyes tightly as we were tossed out of Lunatic Pandora. After a moment, I felt the wind being knocked out of me as I landed and grunted in pain before opening my eyes and watching as the others slowly stood up from a clearly painful landing, as well. Joining them, I glared at Pandora as it moved off, noticing the small ruin in the distance that it was heading too.

Tears' Point.

"Dammit!" I yelled, kicking the ground. _I can't believe we failed!_ "It kills me to let 'em go!" Frowning, I took a few steps back. "I guess we better fall back, for now."

"The Lunar Cry..." Miko muttered warily as she watched with horror, as Pandora grew closer to it's target.

"Let's head back." I insisted quietly, but firmly.

(Normal POV)

As the Lunatic Pandora ruins hovered over Esthar, a familiar face looked out on the advanced city with a sneer. He knew all about the failed attempt at boarding the ruind and almost laughed as he stared at the distant faces of the people he once knew. Turning to the working soldiers, his eyes flashed a bright purple as he slowly walked off, like he was in a trance, his gunblade dragging noisily on the ground behind him.

The giant glowing ruin flew over the barren grounds of the Centra plains, the monsters below, stopping whatever they were doing. Their eyes flashed a bright red and they slowly began to gather, all walking in clusteres towards the memorial, also as if in trances.

There were Coerls, giant tiger-like monsters with tentacles coming out of their cheeks. Turt-a-pods, turtle-like monsters who's shells could open to reveal an undescribable monster within, or close to protect it from physical attacks.

Different varieties of dragon flew, swam or walked along the ground, grunting, growling and roaring as they travelled companionably with other monsters they would normally feed on. This included Ruby Dragons, Grendels, Hexadragons and more.

Hundreds of different types of monsters came together from all over the barren lands, travelling to Tears' Point and surrounding it in one large circle as Lunatic Pandora slowly hovered closer and closer. All their grunts, groans, growls, roars, and any other sounds, faded to a deathly silence as they awaited the coming of the Lunar Cry.

Lunatic Pandora began to float over the ruins. There were hundreds of strange, square devices, all circling a large statue in the center, in a dead silence, no sign of life or power within them. As the ruin floated over head, they began to light up, row by row, and glow as engines could be heard starting up. Some even cracked and the glow died out completely from the power overload, and others shook violently.

Still the ancient ruin continued it's passage, floating farther and father until the center of it's under belly hovered directly over a large statue of, what looked like, Gods. Everything grew dark and quiet as the rest of the pillars lit up, and the statue shook with such force that parts of it, including the face of one of these 'people' cracked and fell off.

Invisible, but nearly tangible energy radiated from Tears' Point, infiltrating Lunatic Pandora and filling it with a forboading power.

Suddenly, all the monsters began to roar, squak, screech, grunt, groan and they all exploded into red dust, flying into Pandora and disappearing. Despite their 'deaths', this was _not_ a good sign!

(Lunar Base)

As the three capsules drew nearer to the Lunar Base, several men in space suits were floating around casually, working on outside cables, or working on a large, metal contraption nearby.

"3 capsules are approaching, shall we retrieve them?" a voice was heard asking, over an intercom.

A man in a space suit with a vaguely familiar voice grunted. "Of course! What do you expect?"

"Are these special personnel coming aboard?"

The man sighed and nodded into his helmet. "Yeah, I hope they don't cause any problems."

"Shall I put security on stand-by?"

"I don't think there'll be a need." he replied surely as he gestured to five more men and motioned for two each to help him bring the capsuls in.

"Then we better station them, all the more." the voice put in with worry. "Capsule Recovery team, initiate recovery process. Security on standby."

"Geez, thanks for the vote of confidence." the man in space muttered sarcastically with a roll of brown eyes. Gesturing for another one to take his place, he floated away from the base. "Why do you always play me like that? I'm gonna go check on Adel. Take care of the rest for me, will ya?"

"Yes, sir!" two people replied as the capsules were carted into the Lunar Base carefully.

Inside another room, Shane, Kapri and tori were all floating around lifelessly. Wall units were activated, and oxygen was pumped into the room.

"Initiating quick-thaw. This is gonna feel a little itchy." someone reported before the lights flashed and the trio began to slowly wake up. "Lock onto rotation ring unit." the voice reported as the two conscious members managed to turn upright. "Lock engaged. Generating artificial gravity."

They slowly dropped to the ground, comfortably, as the gravity was turned on. Standing slowly, Shane looked around in confusion and stared warily at a man with long, striped hair who walked in and bowed.

Frowning, Shane realized they must've been on the Lunar Base and dug out a letter before handing it to the man. "Here's the letter of introduction from Esthar's Embassador."

Without his noticing, a scientist had snuck by him and was kneeling next to Kapri, checking her vitals in shock. "Wow... What is she, 17, 18...? Is she dead?" he asked in a confused voice.

Spinning around, Shane leveled a deadly glare at the man and stalked over. "Don't touch her." he replied in a cold, calm voice as he slowly, gently picked her up and carried her bridal style.

"I understand the situation." the man with the stiped hair stated with a small frown. "Let's get her in the med lab and we'll talk there. Please follow me."

As they walked, the man introduced himself as Andros and told them he was the leading scientist up on the Lunar Base. He led the trio to a medical room and had Shane place Kapri on a bed. However, much to Shane's surprise and worry, the bed closed up like a cryogenic statis chamber, and was sealed.

Glaring at a medical guard, Shane let his eyes narrow dangerously as he got into the guy's face. "You better not do anything to hurt her." he warned quietly.

The guard smiled a little and raised his hands in a sign of understanding. "Alright, alright. You're her knight in shining armor. I get it."

Andros had already gone ahead to the bridge with Tori, leaving Shane to walk around and wander a little. He slowly made his way to the bridge, talking to different people as he went and learning different facts. One of which, really made him uncomfortable and worry.

"We alternate every six months, so for half a year, I live up here with the same people." one woman said with a weary sigh. "We can't take our eyes off her for a second." Her gaze travelled to the large metal contraption. "If Adel were to revive, terror would reign over Esthar again, just like it did 17 years ago."

Since they'd learned they were going into space, no... Since Kapri first fell unconscious, Shane knew something bad was up, but now...learning this, that feeling grew ten times stronger and he began to regret actually bringing Kapri up here, rather than having them bring Kelly down.

(Shane's POV)

As I finally made my way to the bridge, I watched as Tori's jaw dropped at how close to the moon we were and grinned a little. Taking in the beautiful sight, I sighed heavily, thinking about how much Kapri would love it, if she could see it.

"Wow. Look at how close we are to the moon!" Tori cried with he eyes sparkling in the dim light.

One of the personnel at the consoles, turned to look at her with a frown and shook his head with a grim expression. "This is no time to be impressed." he admonished with a raised eyebrow before rubbing his temples. "Look at the monitor over there." he stated, gesturing to a lit up monitor with a set in type of telescope.

Walking over to it, she pointed and looked at the man questioningly. "This one?" When he nodded, she looked through it and adjusted a few things before gasping sharply and her face paled. Pulling away from the monitor, she stared at the man in shock and trembled a little.

"It's really a rare phenomenon." the man stated with a sigh and a look that was torn between being excited and terrified. "You know that giant crater in the Centra continent? It's from the Lunar Cry that happened over a hundred years ago."

I barely knew what he was talking about, but I was guessing he was referring to the Tears' Point. The way the center of it was in the middle of a steep valley, I knew that under those ruins lay a crater.

"It supposedly wiped out the city there."

Another controller nodded. "Some monsters' behavior becomes erratic when there are changes in the moon. I guess it's kind of like how the tide's affected by the moon."

"See them clustering at one point? Eventually they're going to drop down onto Gaia. This is called the Lunar Cry."

Looking through the viewfinder, I felt my face pale as I noticed several red spots on the moon's grey surface. Zooming in, I realized that they were actually varying sizes, but all were massive. Most were easily miles across and wide, and when I zoomed in again, I felt all the blood drain from my faze and my heart stopped beating.

_...The hell is this?!?!_ I wondered in shock as I watched those 'red spots' grow closer together to slowly form one extremely huge 'red spot'.

"Monsters..." Tori breathed.

She was right. Those red spots were hoards and hoards of monsters. Dragon types, flying types, sand dwelling types and so much more. Thousands of breeds of monsters, travelling together as one and gathering all at one spot, getting ready to drop to Gaia.

"The lunar world is a world of monsters, didn't they teach you that in school?" one of the controllers asked with a confused face.

_Yeah, but I doubt anyone ever believed anything could live on the moon, even monsters..._ I thought darkly as I frowned and stared out at the massive group of monsters that only got bigger and bigger with every passing moment.

They began to even climb on top of each other, and their powers converged, allowing them to literally begin to lift off the moon's surface, floating slowly away from the planet in a controled area.

"As you can see, the monsters are gathering at one point. The Lunar Cry is starting."

It was beyond starting at that point. I could almost see the victorious, blood-lust in the eyes of the monsters as they slowly grew closer in a massive, red wave. If anyone looked from the distance, it would look like a pillar of blood was beginning to form, growing ever so slowly longer and farther from the surface of their 'home'.

Heading out of the control room, I headed to the second floor, knowing Kelly's room was there from what I'd learned from Andros earlier.

"The Esthar President often comes out here to inspect Adel's tomb personally." one young woman stated to another as they walked by. "Said he was worried about having her on board, so close to the sealed sorceress."

"Look!" An older man called to a younger girl. "There's the president. He's doing the inspection, personally. What you see out there is his work. He's the one personally responsible for containing Adel in the first place."

Frowning, I logged that bit of information away, heading down the corridor until I arrived at a door with a single guard. Taking a deep breath, I stepped through and felt like i was going to faint in relief when I saw Kelly sitting on the edge of a large couch, not too far away from me.

Looking at me, she smiled and stood up, bowing a little as she walked over. "Shane! I'm so glad to see you again!"

"Me too." I muttered with a relieved sigh.

"I'm sorry." she looked down with a sad face. "I got you involved in so much hardship."

"It's all right." I assured her with a smile. "I understand." _You love your Uncle Tommy but you loved Kat, too, and wanted all of you to be together, as a family._ "I know why you did it. Were we any help?"

"Of course! You guys were my eyes." she stated with a smile, her eyes sparkling. "You helped me to see how much I was loved. I couldn't change the past, but just seeing it was enough to help me. Thank you so much."

Nodding again, I bit my lip. "It's ok. I came here because i need your help. You said there's no way to change the past?" _That can't be right._

Kelly's smile faded and she sighed as she closed her eyes and nodded. "That's right. You're the one who changes. You can find out things from the past, you never knew."

"Really?" _No..._ "That can't be right. I want to find out for myself. Take me to Kapri's past." I begged her, feeling tears well up in my eyes. "Let me see what happened through her eyes. I want to find out what happened, I want to warn her." Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes, clenching my fist at my side.

"...You want to save her. You don't want to lose Kapri." she stated knowingly with a soft look in her eyes. "Shane, I can't. I don't know Kapri. I can only send people I know in the present, into people I knew in the past."

"I brought her." I stated quickly, my hope barely a thin light in the distance. "I brought Kapri with me, she's resting in the med lab! Please, come with me!" I begged.

She nodded and I headed out of the room, running into Tori on the way. I allowed them a moment to reunite before leading them on, but as we made it to the top of the stairs, an alarm sounded, causing us to freeze cold.

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Oh boy, I wonder what's gonna happen. (really, royally evil grin and very evil laughter)

Hope you like it.

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"Kapri! You have to stop!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	42. Space, Part 1

**Disclaimer** : I don't own it... Oh yeah. I forgot I wasn't gonna put the disclaimer in here anymore. Damn, it's become a habit! (Makes a face)

**Note** : If you're confused by any of this, please let me know in a review/PM and I'll be glad to clear up whatever I can, but there's no guarantees I'll be able to clear up everything.

I tried to describe the effects the best I could, even if they're a little different from the game.

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"What's going on?" I called uncertainly, looking around as staff fled around us.

"Red Alert! Red Alert! All units report to med lab, stat!" an automated voice called sternly over the intercom.

"Med lab...Kapri?" I questioned in confusion. _Oh, no._ "That doesn't sound good. It could be dangerous." Turning to Kelly and Tori, I nodded. "Tori, take Kelly to the bridge and stay alert. I'll go check it out!"

They nodded and took off, and I ran down the stairs, turning and running down the hallway to the med lab. As I raced towards Med lab, I watched in horror as a guard was thrown through a door, landing unconscious, on the ground. Stopping, I grabbed the hilt of my gunblade, only to pause and feel my heart break at what I saw.

Kapri.

Walking out of the room, her eyes were pitch black, and she stumbled along. Her body moved as though she was a puppet being controlled. Her arms laid limply at her side and every step she took made her sway dangerously to the side, looking like she was about to fall over.

Though her eyes were black, they were also glazed. Her head laid at a limp angle, and every step was more of a dragged shuffle. Illusions of herself swayed with her body as she moved, making it almost like a wave effect. Some of their eyes were white, and others were their normal sky blue. Some filled with anger, others with sadness, and still others with helplessness.

"Kapri..." I whispered, walking forward. I reached out to touch her, but a painful electricity shot through my body, tossing me aside like a rag doll, and I could only stand against the nearby wall, weakly, as she staggered on.

Shaking my head, I lunged forward, trying to grab her arms, but was once again repelled, gritting my teeth against the pain as I was shot across the room.

_I can't touch her! _ I thought angrily, feeling tears of frustration build up in my eyes. _No! _Dashing forward, I reached out again, managing to grasp her arm as my chst constricted painfully from the energy. Her head shot towards me and her eyes flashed back to their normal blue, begging for my help before they turned black again and she grinned wickedly, making my blood turn cold.

Feeling like I was being squeezed in a vice, I let out a pained cry, letting go of her arm as I struggled to breathe. As soon as I released my hold on her, I was shot against the far wall, again, and stood there, dazedly, staring at her back as she stumbled on, down the hallway. "Kapri... I'm sorry."

Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and raised my hand, casting a Curaga on myself before opening them again and dashing forward, remaining far enough away from her that I didn't get blasted, but close enough to easily follow her to the bridge.

Andros, Tori and several controllers all got in her way as she headed to a specific console, but she easily blasted them all back, and Kelly ran to Tori's side as Kapri pushed a series of buttons.

"That's Adel's tomb's seal deactivation device!" Andros called in horror.

There was a beeping noise and a flash, and Kapri was gone from the room, shooting me one last evil grin before she vanished.

"Adels' Tomb Level 1, Seal Deactivated. Level 1 Seal has been Deactivated." an automated voice replied.

"There's only one seal left!" Andros called as his face went horribly white. He stood quickly and ran to a console and Tori ran to my side after casting a Cura on herself. "Oh, no! The moon!"

Running over to the monitor, I watched as the red spot grew more massive and a blue area formed in the center. As I zoomed in, I could see the energy radiating off the monsters as they growled viscously.

"It's overflowing with monsters." I muttered quietly. " The Lunar Cry..."

"If that's the case, we definitely have to stop her." Andros stated in determination, turning to me. "If she really wants to free Adel, she'll have to go out there. The Second Seal's on Adel's Tomb."

Rushing out of the bridge, I ran up the stairs and down the hall, stopping when I heard a horrified cry.

"Look! The moon's changing!"

Looking out the window, I felt my eyes widen as the pillar that had started before was now three times longer and the blue center was growing bigger. The pillar was extremely close to us, and kept growing closer.

"T-Tons of monsters! They're heading for Tears' Point in Esthar!"

"Then, that means that Lunatic Pandora is at Tears' Point! When did _that_ happen?!!"

All of a sudden, the blue 'eye' of the pilar exploded and hoards of monsters rained down on Gaia! They just seemed to keep coming! Easily, millions of monsters were released, and their target was the Centra Continent on Gaia.

_Please, let the others be safe._ I prayed as I ran to the locker room. There, I noticed one suited figure standing in the air lock, their helmeted face turned in my direction, and even if I couldn't see her too well in the light, I knew it was Kapri. "Kapri! You have to stop!" I yelled, banging on the glass. _Damn! I need a space suit!_

Her suited figure waved briefly at me before abruptly turning and walking out the hatch.

"Dammit!" I yelled angrily, spinning and beginning going through the lockers, searching for a suit to wear. It was the fifth locker I searched, that I found one and I quickly slid it on over my clothes, strapping my gunblade to the suit belt. Placing the helmet on, I double checked that everything was fine, and headed out of the locker room via the same door as her, allowing myself to float down to where she was.

But I'd taken too long. By the time I got out there, I easily knew there was no catching up to her, but I tried. I floated down as quickly as I could, cursing the low speed of the bulky suit.

"Sir! It's not safe!" one suited male called as they took a second man's arm and led him towards the door to get into the ship.

The second man sighed and shook his head, and the third groaned a little. "The flood of monsters is getting closer to Adel's tomb."

"At this rate, Adel's tomb might fall somewhere near Esthar!"

"Why is this happening all at once? It's like someone planned this whole thing, but who could've planned this?!"

Frowning behind my helmet, I watched as a network of lasers moved into place at the bottom of the opening, keeping anyone else from going in or out. _...Sorceress Ultimecia... Damn! I can't get out!_

With a sigh, I headed back on board the ship, keeping myself suited up. Currently, I was too worried about Kapri and listing the many ways to painfully kill Ultimecia to care about a bulky suit.

"We must evacuate! Please, Mr. President!" one of the suited men yelled.

The man from before, stared out the window, his helmet still in place. "Forget about me and just go!" he ordered.

His face might've been covered, and his voice distorted by the intercom, but I _know_ I knew him from somewhere!

"Please, sir! We must go!"

The president was forcefully removed from the area, despite his protesting, but he turned and caught sight of me. I'd taken off my helmet and looked out the window with a frown, when I heard that familiar voice calling to me.

"You!" It was filled with recognition and shock, like he knew me as well, but couldn't believe I was standing in front of him. After a moment he sighed and chuckled. "Take good care of Kelly!" he ordered sternly before being dragged off once again.

After a brief moment, I rushed to the bridge, hearing Andros saying something about the flood of monsteres swallowing Adel's tomb and Kapri along with it. He rushed out of a side door, saying something about evacuating, and Tori hesitantly rushed after him, demanding to know if something could be done to save our friend.

The Tomb was swalowed by the monsters, like he predicted, but Kapri's suited body was pushed a long ways away, rather than swallowed up, and I allowed myself the briefest hint of hope that she could still be saved.

Kelly and I were left behind and she turned to me with such a pained look. "Shane, you should be protecting Kapri, not me. You're the only thing on her mind right now. Can't you hear her calling your name?"

"Take me to her." I begged, having once again replaced my helmet. "Please, Kelly! Sis!"

Her face grew troubled as Andros entered, calling for the next people to be loaded. "I don't know if I can, Shane. I don't know." she replied quickly before rushing off to the side door. Shooting one last, reluctant look to the floating, immobile body, I sighed and followed her.

"There's gotta be something we can do!" Tori demanded from a holding unit that would keep her safe during the pod's trip.

"The oxygen in the suit lasts 20 minutes. With the reserve, it'll give her an extra 5." Andros stated grimly as the pod shot off. "It's unfortunate, but there's nothing that can be done."

"GOD!!!" I screamed. "Kapri's gonna die unless we do something! Kelly, please! I've never felt this way before! Please, help me!"

She paused in holding unit and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "All right. I don't know if it'll work, but I'll try." she reluctantly agreed.

Standing in my holding unit, I took a deep breath as everything went hazy.

**Flashback** (Normal POV)

Hunter and Kapri were in the army vehicle and Hunter was trying to take her home, but she wasn't letting him. The vehicle kept swerving all over the road as Kapri kept trying to grab the wheel.

"Hunter, go back to the desert prison!" she ordered with a glare that made even Shane flinch.

He paled a little but shook his head with a grin. "No can do. Daddy dearest's orders. You're going home and that's final." he stated calmly. His grin faded in a moment though as Kapri decided to set her nails to the side of his face and he swerved madly, pulling over onto the side of the road. "Ouch! Are you crazy?!" he yelled, glaring at her as he held his injured cheek.

"We have to go back and help everyone!" she insisted firmly, opening the door and hopping out.

Hunter hopped out of his side too, walking over to glare at her. "They'll be fine! I'm sure they can get out on their own when the times comes."

"You don't know that!!" she screamed. Then she paused and seemed to think about it. "Ok, well maybe they can, but you know Shane! He'll go on about how he wasn't ordered to leave and probably get himself killed!" _Stubborn hardass!_ "We can't let that happen! We're going back to help them! I don't care if I have to force you all the way there!" she insisted, walking behind him and pushing him back into the vehicle. Climbing in after him, she slapped him on the head repeatedly.

"Ow...ow...OUCH!!" he yelled, grabbing her arm and sighing. "_Fine_!" he hissed, starting the vehicle and turning it around as he rubbed the back of his head with a wince.

With a satisfied smirk, Kapri checked her crossbow, eyeing one of her bolts and then giving Hunter a pointed look that got him to drive all the faster. Turning her gaze to the road, Kapri allowed herself a small, silent giggle. _Hang on Shane! We're coming to help!_

**Flashback**

"Shane's ring?" Dustin asked in confusion as SeeDs milled around them. "I dunno where he bought it. I mean, it's not like we sit down and talk about that sorta thing."

_Like I even _wanna_ picture that!_ Blushing a little, Kapri shrugged. "But, it's just _so_ cool! I want one just like it!"

"You mean the one with the monster on it?"

She nodded excitedly. "Yeah! That's the one!"

He seemed to think about it a moment before nodding with his arms folded over his chest. "Well, how 'bout I make you one? I'm pretty good at that sorta thing."" he stated with a grin.

Her eyes widened and she turned to him, jumping a little by now. "Really!! Sure, ok!!"

He nodded again. "Let's have Shane show us the real thing."

Her face turned a nice cherry red, and reluctantly, Kapri shook her head. "...We can't do that." she muttered quietly, looking to the ground.

"Why not?"

"...It's embarrassing." she admitted with a nervous giggle, her face reddening even further as she clasped her hands behind her back and scuffed the floor with her foot.

"Say what?" he demanded in confusion. Then, his eyes widened and he turned a deep red, himself. "Oh!"

"NO!" Kapri's eyes went even wider and her face actually paled. "No, no, no!" she repeated firmly, raising and shaking her hands. "It's not what you think!"

**End Flashback** (Shane's POV)

"Kelly! That wasn't it! That was too far back!" I called from my holding unit.

She nodded a little. "I'm sorry. Let me try again."

Things went hazy again, and I closed my eyes.

**Flashback** (Normal POV)

Everything was white and when Shane opened his eyes again, he found himself standing behind Kapri at the end of their last battle against Miko. Looking around, he saw Tori kneeling and shaking her head, Dustin was holding his head, Marh was leaning on him weakly, and Hunter was sitting down with a frown as he shook his head. Then, he saw himself laying on the ground with a look of confusion on his face and shuddered.

_Where am I...?_

Looking back towards the podium, Shane watched Blake breathing heavily on the ground, clearly dying and frowned as he felt a pang of guilt. He noticed the almost relieved look in Blake's eyes as the purple flashed again before it seemed to shatter and fade away.

_You're..._

Kapri collapsed to the ground and Shane instinctively tried to rush forward to help her, but found he could'nt move. Watching with a frown, he felt his eyes narrow as she slowly got back up. There was a flash of someone else in Kapri's place, but he ouldn't make it out as it was gone right away.

_Kapri..._

The flash came back as Kapri stumbled over to Blake and he watched as the strange woman turned around in Kapri's body, staring at him with a cruel smirk. She had a head piece on with long, grey horns attached to it, and her long, white hair hung down to her hips. She was clad in a skimpy, blood red dress and had strange tribal markings all over her visible body.

A deep, throaty chuckle echoed through the room hauntingly as the image faded and Kapri knelt beside Blake, lifting his head into her lap.

_This isn't Kapri...!_

"Oh, my loyal knight, Blake. The sorceress is alive..." The voice sounded like Kapri's but eerily, like another was imprinted over top, a deeper voice. "The sorceress commands..."

The sorceress... Then... _Ultimecia?! The future sorceress is inside Kapri?!?! ...Transferred from Miko? ..._ Frowning, he stared at Kapri's obviously possessed body. _...Where's Kapri!!!?!?!?_

"Find the legendary Lunatic Pandora, that is said to be hidden under the ocean. Only then shall the sorceress provide you with dreams, again." She stated calmly with a grin, placing her hand over his chest and healing his wounds.

His eyes filled with anger and he fought to sit up, but her hand clamped down tighter on his chest and he winced in pain, his eyes closing again. Almost immediately, he relaxed and when he opened his eyes, they flashed a brilliant purple as he grinned and slowly sat up. Standing, he walked off, as if in a trance. "Yes... As you wish...Ultimecia..."

_Shane...I'm scared..._ the voice was faint, but he could hear it clearly and winced at the helpless tone.

The image of Ultimecia flashed again as Kapri collapsed completely, and disappeared all together.

_Kapri!!_ he called in a panic.

A stronger, more determined, but no less terrified mental voice answered him. _Who's there?!? Get out!_

Feeling a mental shove, Shane closed his eyes and felt extremely dizzy.

**End Flashback**__ (Shane's POV)

Opening my eyes with a gasp, I sucked in precious oxygen as I felt my whole body shaking from a powerful electrical jolt. Hearing the sound of a holding unit opening, I looked to my right and saw Kelly fall out of hers, landing on her knees and panting heavily.

"Kelly!" Hitting a button in my unit, I opened it and moved over to kneel beisde her.

Panting a little more, she moved back so she was kneeling and gave me a shaky smile, her face pale. "Did you find out what happened to Kapri? Were you able to change the past?"

Shaking my head, I sighed deeply. "I couldn't change anything... What should I do?" _I can't just give up on her!_

Kelly's eyes grew misty and she smiled a little, brushing a hand down my cheek. "I remember those eyes." she stated with a distant look and soft voice. "You just looked at me with the same eyes that you had when you were little. Those curious, innocent puppy-dog eyes. I loved those eyes."

"That's the past." I stated quietly with a frown.

She nodded. "That's right. What's important is right now. I just learned that."

"I have to save Kapri now. That's the only thing I can do, right?" I asked softly.

Kelly nodded a little and leaned back into the unit, closing her eyes. "That's right. Talk to her, Shane. Your voice might not reach her, but your heart will. Are you ready? I'm taking you to the nearest past...to the closest present to the future..."

Things went hazy, and I quickly raced myself against my unit before closing my eyes.

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Wow. I'm out of it. LOL. I've been tired all day, and after going to the gym, I feel... well, I feel stoned. I'm NOT! But I feel like I am and I'm sitting here, laughing and being totally random for no reason at all...

Anyway, Hope you like it.

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"Life Support has terminated."

_Good bye. Shane..._

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	43. Space, Part 2

**Disclaimer** : Screw it. Read any past chapters and you'll know what I have to say.

**Note** : Listen to Eyes on Me during the Ragnarok Pilot Seat scene to set the mood. LOL. Boy, did that sound wrong. Fluff alert! Fluff alert! Sappyness abound!

**JuseaPeterson** - You mentioned wanting to know what happens next, right? Well, here you go. I hope it was worth the wait and answers some of your questions.

**Lunatic Pandora Tidbit** - The Crystal Pillar within Pandora, which causes the Lunar Cry, orinated from the moon, in some people's opinion. The Lunatic Pandora was an enclosure created around the Crystal Pillar, by Esthar, and is 3 miles tall and 1.5 miles wide in a rectangular shape. Very Hi-Tech facility.

Though none of this will likely be mentioned in the fic, I thought I should include it to give readers a better understanding of just how big Pandora is, as well as possibly how the Crystal Pillar causes the Lunar Cry...

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**Flashback** (In Space, Normal POV)

Looking around frantically, Kapri tried to figure out what was going on. Directly in front of her, though quite a ways away, was a glowing, blood red pillar of creatures flying down to Gaia, and she frowned deeply as a metal contraption seemed to flash within it, also making it's way down to the planet.

Turning her head this way and that, she saw numerous escape pods heading to the planet, and on her other side laid the moon.

_The moon... I remember hearing that...the lunar world is a world full of monsters. _ She thought fuzzily as she gazed at it. _Billy told me it was pretty to look at, but if anyone ever combined a massive ruin known as Lunatic Pandora with another ruin called Tears' point, it would cause total havoc. Is that... Is that what's going on?_

Trying to move her arms, she felt tears come to her eyes when she realized she was helpless. Kapri checked her rockets and found no fuel to propel her any where, and her oxygen was running low.

"Remaining Life Support System, 15 seconds." a tiny, automated voice called from inside her helmet.

A single tear ran down her cheek as she closed her eyes, feeling the fear and helplessness washing over her as the timer counted down. The oxygen was getting thinner and it was becoming more difficult to breathe. She tried to take shallower breaths, but it only made her heart pound faster, her lungs demanding air, _now_.

Opening her mouth, she felt her lips trembling as she closed them again, knowing speaking was useless. But, it didn't stop the terrifying thoughts from passing through her mind.

_Am I...gonna make it?_ What even happened in the first place? All she could recalled was defeating Sorceress Miko with Shane and the others, and then a numbing, freezing sensation running over her body as she was enveloped in a light pink light. There was a sinister presence then, and she could hear her voice speaking...but it wasn't her! Her body moved of it's own accord, and she could hear a haunting laughter in her ears that never seemed to quit.

_How?_ She tried once again to move and let out a choked sob, gasping for oxygen as she realized how futile it was. _I can't do anything..._ And even if she could, there was no where to go and no one to help her. _Drifting...endlessly... I'm helpless._ she thought in frustration as more tears leaked down her face.

Her lungs began to burn and she could make out an escape pod not too far from her location, but she knew she couldn't get to it in time. Her vision began to blur and she closed her eyes, struggling to open them again as the air got thinner.

"Remaining Life Support, 0."

_No... I'm... That's it...I'm gonna... I'm gonna die..._ Her heart pounded violently as she opened her mouth, gasping for air that had stopped flowing. Her tears kept falling as she struggled to breathe and she coughed silently as she fought to remain conscious.

"Life Support has terminated."

Biting her lip hard to keep from sobbing, Kapri blinked her blurry eyes, imagining the stoic face of Shane one last time. _Good bye. Shane..._

_**Kapri!! No!!! Don't give up!!**_

Blinking in confusion, she felt her eyes narrow in confusion. She must've been really oxygen deprived already, if she was imagining his voice, but then... What was that feeling...? That sudden urge to fight some more and survive?

_I... I want to see... I want to see him._ she thought weakly.

Shaking her head a little, she blinked again, noting how hard it was to open her eyes. She was gasping for air, her lungs almost on fire by now and demanding oxygen. A pressure built up in her chest and head, giving her a massive migrane and feeling like her heart was going to explode.

_**Can you hear me?! It's Shane...Kapri!!! Kapri!!! Please, fight it! **_

Her chest was heaving and her mouth open a crack as she struggled to breathe, but the oxygen was gone and she felt dizzy and nauseous. Her helmet began to steam up as her eyes closed a little, becoming next to impossible to keep open.

_**Kapri, come on!! Try to remember!!**_

Frowning as her eyes narrowed a little more, she glanced at her communicator briefly, wondering if someone really _was_ trying to contact her, but it was off. She shook her head a little as her eyes closed to slits, being unable to keep them open. She could feel a coldness moving over her body and everything was going numb, but this time, she knew it was from the lack of oxygen.

Letting her eyes close, she felt the darkness creeping up on her, but also felt another presence. A familiar one.

_**Kapri, I'm right here, with you! Listen to me!!**_

She lost herself to the darkness, feeling the welcome relief from the burning in her chest. Allowing herself to float lifelessly through space, she almost smiled at the thought that she found someplace she finally belonged. One where she was good and made real friends.

A world where she fell in love, and was loved in return.

_**...I want to see you, too...**_

As her eyes lay closed, she was surprised when she noticed a shadow pass over them. _What...? _Struggling, she managed to open her eyes a crack and saw Shane's Griever ring floating beside the ring Blake had given her, on her chain.

_Shane..._ Forcing her eyes open further, she reached up and weakly touched the glass of her helmet with a gloved hand as hope and sorrow ran through her. _I can't... _Blinking with difficulty, she allowed her hand to slide down to the small console on her chest and hit a button, activating her reserves of air. _ I won't give up so easily!_ she thought with a gasp as the air flooded her helmet, blowing her hair out of her face.

_I'm still...alive. Shane...?_ Was he really there, with her, the whole time? Touching her thickly suited neck absently, she allowed herself a smile. _Yeah, I can feel him. I know he's here..._

**End Flashback** (Shane's POV)

Opening my eyes, I smiled a little behind my helmet. She was scared, but she was fighting. Standing up slowly, I staggered a little and shook my head. I'd opened a vent in my helmet, allowing me to save my oxygen, and turning to face Kelly, I closed it. "I'm gonna go find Kapri." I stated in a deadly calm, turning on the suit's oxygen and checking to make sure my gunblade was still secure.

Kelly nodded and smiled as she stood up and hugged me lightly. "You didn't need my help at all."

_I wouldn't say that. _I thought with a raised eyebrow and grin. "Thank you Sis." I said, hugging her back before I pulled away and watched as she carefully stepped back into her holding unit.

Turning away, I set myself up and grabbed a lever that took me to the outside of the ship.

"Shane, wait! Come back!" Tori called furiously.

"He's an idiot!" Andros called in shock. "There's no way for him to get back! They're both gonna run out of fuel and oxygen in no time! They'll die."

_Kapri... Where are you? I'm gonna find you, no matter what!_

Heading out of the ship, I scanned the area, looking for Kapri. Not too far behind us, I watched as a seemingly lifeless body floated by and instinctively knew it was her. Pushing off from the ship, I used my rockets to get me closer to her and stretched my arms out.

_I've gotta get in front of her and catch her._

Managing to grab hold of her from behind, I allowed her momentum to carry us away as I wrapped my arms securely around her waist, molding my body against hers. _Got you! And I'm never letting you go, again!_

"Shane!"

I felt her hands come over mine and linked my hands with hers.

"Thank you. I felt you... I heard your voice." she stated with a small sob.

_She...heard me?_ "...I can't believe it." Shaking my head, I tightened my hold on her.

"Are we...gonna make it?" she asked hesitantly as we spun aimlessly through space.

"Don't worry." I insisted as surely as I could, considering our situation. Carefully, I checked my reserves and frowned deeply as I noticed how low I was on everything. _Damn! Out of fuel... Low on oxygen... What now? Die in space?_ Masking my face, I loosened my hold on Kapri and spun her a little so she was facing me before pulling her close again, resting my helmeted face against hers. _I'm so helpless._

Biting back my tears, I gave her a small smile, watching as she returned it with one of her own. Her suit beeped loudly and her face paled a little as she wrapped her arms around my neck and looked away from me.

I allowed a single tear to fall then, knowing what that noise meant.

"Remaining Life Support Reserves, 10 seconds." I heard an automated voice state inside her helmet and I bit my lip.

_I can't even save Kapri?! Come on! Think!_ I thought angrily.

Kapri's eyes had travelled past mine and after a moment, they widened considerably. Seeing a reflection in her helmet, I turned my head and watched as a large, red space ship floated aimlessly through space, not far at all from where we were.

"Kapri, hold on!" I instructed as I kicked off, pushing us towards the ship.

As it spun, I noticed the elegantly carved dragon's features in it, and saw a handle approaching. Grabbing a single grappling gun my suit held, I shot it at the handle and nodded triumphantly as it hooked, before I hit the trigger, pulling us in.

Once we got a hold on the ship, we carefully climbed along the side until we found a hatch to enter through. Pulling it open, I frowned a little at a strange scraping noise, but gestured for Kapri to go in first before immediately following her in.

(Ragnarok)

I quickly found a computer console and typed in a few commands, re-instating the gravity and oxygen, and sending a mental prayor for the large amount of oxygen left.

"Life Support Reserves, terminated."

_Not a moment too soon._ I thought as Kapri swiftly removed her helmet and took a deep breath. Turning my back to her, I began to strip out of the suit and after a few moments, tossed the last piece aside with a sigh of relief, wiping my hand across my sweaty face.

As Kapri stripped out of the last piece of her suit, she adjusted her top a little and checked her crossbow before brushing herself off and looking at me with a big smile.

_Wh-What?_ I thought nervously, seeing the teasing glint in her eyes.

"Thank you, Shane. You always seem to keep saving me." she stated with a grin. "I guess I have my own personal knight in shining armor." Hesitating a moment, she looked at my outfit and giggled a little. "Well, my own personal knight, anyways." Shaking her head, she sighed. "I can't thank you enough."

"Don't worry about it." I stated quietly, feeling like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders, to see Kapri alive and herself again, standing right in front of me. "I just did what I wanted to do."

Holding out her arms, she giggled a little and seemed to wait for something.

_Now what?_ I thought with a little irritation as I gazed at her cluelessly.

"The space suit was in our way, before." she stated calmly, an obvious hint at something.

_...Huh?_

"Give me a hug!" she called a little, bringing her arms in to her chest as she hugged herself tightly. "A real tight one." Looking at the ground, she seemed to sober up. "I need to know that I'm alive."

_...Alive? We still need to get out of here._ I thought, feeling my cheeks heat up. "We may be alive right now...but look at our situation. You want to live, right? You want to go back and see everyone?"

"And not become another person's memory?" she asked softly, knowingly.

Hesitating a little, I nodded. "That's right."

As we walked out onto the ship, there was a thunderous roar from below us and Kapri let out a terrified squeak, barely able to keep from screaming, and dropped to her knees on the catwalk.

Dropping beside her, I looked out over the edge and noticed a large, red scaled alien-like creature stalking the floor below. It was easily a lot bigger than us, and in the corner of the room looked to be at least three bodies with the remains of space suits.

My guess was that this monster overtook the ship some time ago and killed the crew...?

"What is it?" Kapri whispered quietly.

I shook my head and shrugged. _How the hell should I know? _"Do I look like an expert on alien monster types?" I asked sarcastically. Sighing heavily, I brushed a hand against my face and closed my eyes. "Sorry. Listen..." Looking at her, I quickly glanced down at the monster. "We don't know what it is, or what it's capable of, so we should try to avoid it for now."

Standing up quietly, I made for a door at the end of the catwalk and tried to open it, but there was a series of beeps before a computerized voice sounded over the intercom, making the monster roar and dash around with clearly inhuman speeds.

"Emergency Security System activated. Cockpit Access denied until all threats are eliminated."

_Threat_s_?? As in...more than one?_ Looking back at the monster, I frowned. One looked tough enough. Just how many of these things were there?

We found out the hard way. Though these things were fast, as long as we walked in the shadows and hid around the corners, we could sneak past them into the other rooms, but that only served to make us visible and vulnerable to the monster on the other side.

There were at least eight of the monsters, two red, two yellow, two purple, and two blue. Kapri and I managed to kill a red on and made it into the next room to kill a blue one. They attacked hard, and had a bad habit of casting Sleep, Silence and Blind on us. Luckily, we had Esuna junctioned to our armor, protecting us from those spells.

And Unfortunately, we didn't realize the pattern earlier.

After going to each room and killing seven of them, when I went to return to the previous room, I was blindsided by one that ressurected while we were gone. Luckily, Kapri managed to stall him and heal me, and we killed it.

"What the hell?!" I demanded, holding my blade at it's...well, it's throat, I think, and glaring at the corpse. "Didn't we kill this one already?!"

Pursing her lips, Kapri knelt at it's side and frowned. "Hey, look. It's wounds are healing."

Immediately, I pulled Kapri back and thought about what was going on.

_Eight monsters...two of each color...we can kill them randomly, but they come back to life, so..._ "Do you think we need to kill them by color code?"

Giving me a confused look, Kapri shrugged. "...Huh?"

"Think of it." I urged, absently casting a Holy to keep the monster down. "We kill them randomly and they just keep coming back. But there's two of every color. This ones a purple one, and I remember where the other one is. I bet, if we kill it, they'll stay dead." I mused out loud.

An enlightened look came over her face and she nodded. Heading around the ship, we carefully took out the monsters in color code. First the purples, since one was already down, then the yellows, followed by the blues and then the reds.

"Security Lock released" the computerized voice replied as it seemed to sense the monsters were gone. I heard doors opening and grinned to Kapri as we made our way to the cock pit.

Seeing the seven seats, I blinked in shock, realizing the cockpit was huge.

"Wow!" Kapri muttered in awe, looking around with wide eyes.

Making my way to each of the seats, I frowned. _Don't tell me... I have to..._fly_ this thing?!?_

A panel to my left began to beep and I looked over, noticing the dust covering it. Walking over to it, I stood behind the seat and looked at it absently.

"Shane, it's trying to talk." Kapri muttered in shock.

_No, it's a signal. Consoles don't 'talk', Kapri._ I thought with a roll of my eyes. Looking at the buttons, I frowned and reached forward. _...Volume?_ Pressing it, I jumped a little as a concerned voice came through.

"This is Esthar Airstation."

_It's..._

"Ragnarok, do you read? Ragnarok, do you read?!"

_...a radio signal._

"This is the Airstation. Do you copy?!"

Feeling a weight bolt into my side and arms wrap around my waist, I looked down in surprise to see Kapri clinging to me tightly. My face got warm again, but I ignored it as I lightly wrapped my arms around her shoulders a moment, before pulling away.

"This is the Ragnarok?" I questioned absently.

There was a moment of silence before an excited voice carried through in response. "Whoa! Is this really the Ragnarok?! You're in space, right?"

_Last time I checked... _I nodded a little and leaned on the back of the chair. "Yeah, but I have no idea where we are."

"Roger that! We can track you from here!"

My eyes widened and I heard a slight gasp, turning my head to see Kapri looked shocked and...scared? Frowning a little, I wondered why she was scared. I was about to turn and ask when I heard the voice again and what it said caused me to turn back to the console.

"Ragnarok, it's been 17 years!" the person cried excitedly.

_!7 years..._ "Can we make it back?" After all, if this ship's been floating in space for 17 years, it might not have the needed oxygen or fuel, the body might be rusted in crucial areas...

"Leave it to us! You should have enough fuel!" He went on to explain what I needed to do, and basically, I understood about half of what he was saying. When I asked for specific details, the guy was all too happy to assist us.

"Are you in the pilot seat?"

Looking around, I frowned at the numerous seats. If you went by the way things normally went, tradition if you would, the pilot seat would be one of the two front ones. But there were _two_ front ones, each with totally different panels, and there was no guarantee that it was either of them. "There's too many seats here." I groaned, shaking my head.

"It's the one in the front, on the right."

Heading to it, I hopped over and sat in it, checking out the panel and dusting it off so I could see better. "All right."

He told me what to enter and I did, double checking it to make sure nothing was wrong before hitting a button to send it into the computer. Then, he advised me to turn off the gravity generator to save some fuel, and I did so.

"Congratulations, Ragnarok. You're home free. And one more thing from all of us down at Ground Control. We wish you God speed." the man said warmly.

Nodding a little, I allowed myself a smile as I hung onto the seat to keep from being lifted into the air. _We're really going home. Matron, Dustin, Marah, Tori, Hunter... We're coming back..._ "Thanks." Turning my head to Kapri, I gestured for her to come sit down, and bit my lip to keep from laughing at what happened next.

Taking an unsure step forward, Kapri was lifted off the ground and floated by unevenly as she swung her arms wildly. "Hey?!" she cried in shock, curling up into a ball as she floated helplessly.

Looking at her, and how she buried her face in her knees, I let myself smile and pushed off from my seat, floating over to her and gently taking her arms. Pushing off again, I brought her back to the pilot seat and left her floating as I sat down, putting my seatbelt on.

"Go sit over there." I instructed, pointing to the seat beside me. "Put your seatbelt on."

Turning to the concole, I felt my eyes widen in surprise when her body, instead, chose to land in my lap, and she wrapped her arms around my neck, curling against me and shivering a little. I opened my mouth to say something but closed my eyes and closed it again, wrapping my hands around her waist to hold her in place.

We stayed like that for a little while, silently enjoying the warm, safe embrace. To be honest, I wasn't sure if I should be uncomfortable or not, because I really wasn't used to this kind of affection, and it made me nervous.

Shifting a little, Kapri buried her face in my neck and I could still feel her shivering. But, it was warm, so... Why was she shivering?

With a heavy sigh, I closed my eyes and gave a half-hearted nudge to her, pointing to the seat again. "Now, go sit down." I stated softly, looking at the top of her head.

She shook her head quickly and tightened her hold a little, cuddling deeper into my arms and making me blush. "Just a little longer..." she pleaded shakily.

"Why're you holding me like this?" I found myself asking without realizing it.

Looking into my eyes, I saw the uncertainty. "You don't like this, Shane?"

Frowning a little, I shrugged and looked away. "Just...not used to it."

"How about when you were little? Didn't you feel safe and secure when your parents would hold you?" she pressed lightly.

I shrugged again and looked back at her big blue eyes. "I can't remember anything about my parents." I admitted quietly. "But...Kelly was there. She was there to hold my hand."

Nodding a little, Kapri buried her face into my neck and took a deep breath, blowing it out again and making me shudder from the ticklish sensation. "I bet it made you feel secure." she stated whistfully.

_Is that what she wants? To be held and made to feel secure? But...why would she suddenly need to feel safe and secure? Is it because of what Ultimecia did, using her body?_ "Sure. But she just left. Just disappeared." I answered a little bitterly, feeling the old pang come back as I remembered how I'd spent that time on the back porch, vowing to take care of myself. "I'm afraid..." I whispered as I felt tears come to my eyes and closed them. "Afraid of having that feeling of comfort taken away."

"You're afraid of losing us." she stated knowingly with a slight nod. "That's why you kept everyone away, kept your distance."

"I was always alone..."

"Shane..." She tightened her hold and curled up even more in my embrace, moving to rub her cheek against mine lightly before kissing it and burying her face into my neck again. "You missed out on all the good things in life. You've missed out on so much!"

Blushing, I looked at the console and nodded carefully. "...Maybe."

"Definitely." she stated sternly. "I like being like this. I miss having my mom..." She trailed off.

I knew she was remembering that her mom on this planet wasn't really _her_ mom, or maybe she was remembering her real mom on a different world, or in a different reality... Frowning, I looked at the top of her head and let my hand drift up to stroke the blonde locks slightly. _After all her time here, the fact that she's from another world or dimension... It still bothers her. _Closing my eyes, I allowed myself a smirk. "I'm not your mom." Classic comment and I knew it would get her mind off that situation for a moment at least.

She giggled a little. "No. Of course not. But now..." Her voice hitched a little before she giggled again. "Shane, you're the one who gives me the most comfort." Then she out right laughed. "And annoyance and disappointment, too!"

"Whatever." I muttered with a roll of my eyes, blushing when she repeated me in sync, breaking out into giggles again.

"You should get back to your seat now." I stated with a sigh.

She shook her head and buried herself as deeply as she could into my arms. "Just a little longer."

_You'll be safer in your seat._ I thought in resignation as I brushed my hands through her locks again and looked out over the approaching planet. As much as I didn't want to admit it, I did enjoy this. Not just the feeling of being whole, with her arms wrapped around my neck, but the knowledge that she was alive and safe, safe within my arms. The feeling of happiness that I was able to save her.

"We're gonna make it home, right?" Her voice sounded shaky and uncertain, almost scared.

I nodded a little, wanting to scream 'yes' but not wanting to get ahead of myself. "We can only hope." I answered instead.

"When we get back...we won't be able to stay together, huh?"

I frowned a little and shook my head, feeling my confusion peak at her words. "...Maybe." _I hope we can._ "No one can predict the future. There are no guarantees." But if there was a way, I silently vowed to find it. "Those are your words, Kapri." I reminded her grimly.

She sighed and shook her head, pulling away a little but refusing to look me in the eyes. "That's not what I meant."

"We'll figure out what to do once we get back." I stated with a frown, wondering where her attitude was coming from and why she seemed so sad and resigned.

Her eyes closed tightly and she leaned up, gently pressing her lips to mine. I blinked in surprise, feeling my whole body stiffen up at the warm, tingling sensation and felt my face heat up, but it seemed to last only a second before I closed my eyes and gave in, kissing her back.

All too soon, she pulled away and gazed at me with such pain and sadness in her blue eyes as she carefully pushed off and sat in her seat, doing up her seatbelt and looking at the floor. "They're all gonna be mad at me." she stated softly.

"Mad...?" I echoed in confusion. Trying to think about it, I put a lot of what happened into context and ended up with a theory. One I _didn't_ like!

"Ragnarok, this is Airstation. Do you read me?"

"This is the Ragnarok." I replied calmly, staring at Kapri as she stared lifelessly at the ground, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"We have some questions for you. We've been gathering escape pods and have a fairly good idea of what's going on. I hear there's no one from Lunar Base on board. How many of you are there?"

"...Just two." I repied after a moment, still watching as Kapri wiped away her tears and she hunched a little farther, letting her head hang limply.

"...And your names?"

"Shane Clarke. I'm a SeeD from Balamb Garden."

"...:And the other?"

"Kapri-"

"Kapri?! Sorceress Kapri?! She's on board with you?!?" the voice demanded harshly.

Frowning, I watched as her eyes met mine slowly and she offered me a weak smile before she covered her face and began to cry. _So...It's true?_ My theory was right. _Kapri's become a Sorceress..?_

"I'm a sorceress now, Shane. That's why I can't travel with you anymore." she stated reluctantly, her eyes filled with hesitant acceptance.

"Respond, Ragnarok!" the voice seemed to become concerned.

"Nobody would want to be around me anymore. On earth, I kinda got used to it, but now... After making such amazing friends..." She hesitated a little and winced.

"The sorceress will be seized upon arrival. Make sure to follow the crew's directions!" the person ordered sternly.

"I'm...scared." she whispered, bringing her knees up to her chest and burying her face in them.

"Shane, do you read me?! ...Is the sorceress listening, too?"

Growling angrily, I glared at the intercom and harshly slapped the button to silence it before unbuckling my seatbelt and moving to kneel at Kapri's side. Undoing her seatbelt, I gathered her into my arms, holding her tightly and finally realizing why she didn't want to leave my arms before.

It all became too clear, and my mind was filled with questions and thoughts, all of which swirled around too fast to make sense of. I held her tightly and lightly kissed the top of her head, wondering what to do.

"I'm scared, Shane." she admitted, looking at me briefly.

I nodded a little and leaned in to kiss her lightly. _Me too._ I thought as tears gathered in my eyes and I held her once again. _Me too._

"I don't wanna go back." she whimpered, holding my jacket tightly and shaking in my arms.

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...(Shakes head) Sappy. LOL So, now you know what happened to Kapri. ...I like this chapter. Then again, I've liked like the last three chapters, so...

Ok, I'm back with updates for everyone. Sorry it took so long.

Hope YOU liked it! LOL

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_Now...Am I just supposed to let you go?_

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R+R please!

Thank you.

Tenshi


	44. Saving Kapri Again

**Disclaimer** : What did I say?

**Note** : **JuseaPeterson** - The flashback with Tommy took place in the same timeframe as the ones in WinHill and such, only maybe a few months ahead. Still 'in the past' for Shane and them, seeing as Kelly was still a child. Yeah. When Lunatic Pandora is positioned over Tears' Point, the Lunar Cry begins, where the monsters fall from the moon. Hmmm...? What phraze? LOL Oh yeah... LOL.

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(Back on Gaia, just Outside Ragnarok)

I sat in my seat, watching as Kapri gazed at the approaching Centra Continent with glazed eyes. Honestly, I was lost as to what to do. I didn't want to let her go, but Esthar wouldn't just let her leave with me so easily.

Was it best to let her go? But she didn't deserve to be sealed away! It's not like she _chose_ to become a sorceress!

_I don't know what to do..._ I thought in a daze, watching as a single tear slid down her cheek but she quickly wiped it away. _...This is just another cross-roads in my life, but for the first time ever, I don't know what to do. I don't know which way to go. _Staring at the beautiful blonde next to me, I let my own tears slip out, knowing the fate that was coming. _I've come this far because I've...fallen for you... Kapri..._

_Now...am I supposed to let you go...?_

Once we landed, I sighed and led her silently out of the ship, not surprised at the two scientists that stood waiting for us. There was a car behind them and upon seeing us, they rushed over.

"Sorceress Kapri..." the tall, slender one bowed gracefully.

The other nodded and bowed. "Hyne's descendant."

With a nod, she walked over to them and stood with a strong, determined face. Behind them, I knew I must've looked aweful. I felt like I hadn't slept or eaten in a month, empty and hollow inside. I felt like I was sapped of all my energy and could only stand there weakly as she nodded when they said something about sealing her up for the world's protection.

Then, she turned to me, her beautiful blue eyes filled with tears as she walked over and gave a sad smile.

"...I should tell you this before I go. I finally remember what happened, and I was possessed by a sorceress out in space. Ultimecia, a sorceress from the future. She seeks to compress time because only she'd be able to live in a world like that. She, and no other. As long as I'm free, she'll continue using me to achieve her goal. I..." She hesitated and reached up to gently brush a hand against my cheek.

I felt a wetness roll down it and knew I was crying, but I felt like I didn't have the energy to move.

"I...We can't let that happen, right?" she asked softly, looking away. "...I should go now." Walking over to her escort, she nodded reluctantly. "...I'm ready."

"All right. We'll be heading to the Sorceress Memorial."

As they walked off, Kapri stopped and looked over her shoulder, absently holding her necklace and flashed me a small smile.

That's all it took. "Kapri!" I yelled, taking a few steps closer and feeling my heart break. "Don't go!" _We'll find another way!_

Tears slipped out of her eyes and she bit her lip before shaking her head. "...Thank you Shane, but I have to go." she said faintly before looking down at her throat. "Oh, I still have your ring!"

"...You keep it." _What use would I have for it, anyway? _I thought numbly.

"You sure?" she asked hesitantly.

I nodded. "Yeah..." Looking away quickly, I heard her walk off and a door slam before the engine of the car started up and it drove off.

_...This is what Kapri decided._ I thought weakly as I made my way to the Ragnarok Meeting room and collapsed into one of the chairs. _I can't do anything about it, can I?_

Closing my eyes, I jumped into a standing position when I heard a door opening and spun, hoping to find Kapri standing there. When my eyes met another blonde, I sighed and looked down.

"I'm home!" Tori called cheerily. "Phew! A lot's happened since we got back." Moving into the room, she folded her arms over her chest and groaned. "I was knocked out for a while when we made it back, and when I came to, it was just me and Andros."

_Andros?_ I wondered in confusion, until I remembered the guy who was stating that I was crazy for going after Kapri. _Oh, yeah. Him. The guy who escaped with us._ Frowning, I stared at Tori as something hit me. _Just them? Where's Kelly?_

"Kelly's gone." she stated with a worried frown. "Not only that, but there were signs of a struggle. I hope everything's ok. The Esthar rescue crew brought me here and told me you were all safe."

"I see."

"Shane... When you jumped into space, you weren't thinking of anything else but saving Kapri, were you?"

I shook my head. "Nope."

"I wonder if anyone would ever do that for me?" she asked whistfully.

Biting back a grin, I raised an eyebrow. _Probably Blake..._ Then I had to bite back a wince. ..._If he hadn't lost his mind to an evil sorceress..._ Then I thought about how he'd probably harp on her being 'reckless' for a long time afterwards and how he was 'the hero' who saved her life.

"Oh well." She looked around and frowned deeply in confusion. "So where's the princess who changed the ever cautious Shane?"

_Kapri is..._

The door surged open just then and Dustin, Hunter and Marah rushed in, stopping and staring at me in shock.

"S'up Shane!!!" Dustin yelled, as exciteable as ever. "So glad your safe!"

I could tell. Marah collapsed into a seat and breathed heavily with a relieved look on her face, Hunter stared at her with a lecherous grin, which faded when he caught my warning glare, and Dustin was all grins.

Tori kept eyeing the room pointedly and suspiciously.

"I hate to tell you this now, but we've got major problems down here!" Taking a deep breath, he nodded to himself and stood at attention, saluting me. "Well, here goes."

His first report to his commanding officer, and it had to come _now_?!

"Some big thing called Lunatic Pandora came outta no where. Matron couldn't achieve what she set out to do, because of it, but that's ok. Matron isn't a sorceress anymore. She passed on her powers accidentally, without realizing it."

_To Kapri..._ I thought sadly.

"And, uh... Oh, yeah! The Galbadian Military is controlling Lunatic Pandora. They excavated it from the ocean, where Esthar sank it years ago. Inside, there's this thing called the 'Crystal Pillar' which calls the monsters down from the moon. Monsters are raining from the moon and it's total chaos down here! Adel came down with the monsters, and Lunatic Pandora caught her! Dr. Odine thinks that might've been Galbadia's true intent, meaning-"

"Dustin!" Rubbing my temples, my head ran over all the information he gave me and I frowned as my thoughts returned to Kapri. "That's enough for now." I repled calmer.

"But, Shane..."

"I know." I replied firmly. "I know we've got problems. But I can't think right now."

Tori frowned in concern and walked over. "What's wrong?"

_I'm so gonna get it now, but it's what I deserve._ "Kapri's a sorceress now. She's the one who received Matron's power. An escort from Esthar came and picked her up. That's where she is right now."

"We gotta go save her!" Marah cried before racing out of the room.

"Was she taken by force?" Tori asked in confusion.

I shook my head and sank back down in one of the seats. "No. It's was Kapri's decision. She was scared of being a sorceress. Scared of being hated... Feared... Scared that no one would want to be around her." _But I want to be around her._ "She said she couldn't handle that."

Hunter frowned and shook his head before leaving, presumably, to follow Marah.

"Didn't you try to stop her, Shane?" Tori demanded in disappointment.

_No. Not really. _"It was Kapri's decision." I repeated weakly, wondering in reality, _why_ I'd let her go.

"Oh, stop that!" Tori scolded, shaking her head and glaring at me. "What are you talking about?! Why did you go all the way out, into space, to save Kapri? To hand her over to Esthar?! No, right? wasn't it because you wanted to be with Kapri? You're a fool!"

"Seriously." Dustin stated with a frown.

_...A fool?_ "Maybe..."_ What am I doing...? I may never get to hear Kapri's voice again... What the hell am I doing just sitting here?! What _can_ I do?! ...Of course..._ Standing up immediately, I felt a frown on my face as I checked my gunblade.

"Have you decided?" Tori asked with a slight grin tugging at her face.

Dustin grinned fully and flexed his fingers, fixing his gloves. "We're going after her, right?"

Glaring at the door, I nodded. "Lunatic whatever and Adel are out of my hands. I don't even know where to find Sis. All I know is Kapri. The only thing I want to do, for sure, right now, is for Kapri. We're going to get Kapri back!" _Like _hell_ I'm gonna lose her now!!_

I took a few steps to the door when the whole ship began to shake and I stumbled to the side.

"Whoa!" Dustin cried as he staggered to his knees.

Tori fell into one of the seats and turned to look out the window, paling at what she saw. "Ahh...excuse me, but... We're flying?!"

Dustin's face paled next and he stood up shakily, looking around like he was expecting something bad to happen. "I _really_ hope this ain't the case, but, I can just see Marah in the pilot seat, and..."

Tori stood so fast, I jumped in surprise and her eyes widened in horror. "...Marah screaming "Whoo-hoo!! We're flying!!""

_...And beside her, a very excited Hunter._ I finiedh the thought with wide eyes.

Racing to the cockpit, I watched as an over-excited Hunter stood beside Marah with a huge grin.

"Whoo-hoo! We're flying!" Marah called hyperly as she bounced a little.

Hunter looked at me with amazement written across his face. "Isn't Marah amazing?!"

"You sure you can fly this?" I asked Marah nervously.

She shrugged and offered a nervous grin. "Well, it just kinda took off on it's own. I think I can control it all right, but there's no guarantee it won't crash..."

_No one can predict the future, right?_ I thought hesitantly, nodding as I decided to put my trust in Marah. I'd trusted Dustin earlier and he kept Matron safe, so now it was time to trust Marah. "We're heading to the Sorceress Memorial. Kapri'll likely be there."

With a nod, she lifted the controls slightly and the ship raised higher, flying over Esthar and towards the distant buildings marking the Sorceress Memorial.

(Sorceress Memorial)

Landing the ship just outside the Sorceress Memorial, I gathered Tori, and Marah, having Dustin and Hunter as backup in case there was a battle. We rushed out of the ship, but as we approached the building, I shot the others a look that told them to keep their weapons put away fro now and follow my lead quietly.

Walking slowly up to the guards at the door, I nodded to them and looked at the building a moment.

"Come to say farewell to your comrad, eh? ...Well, I'll make an exception for you, this once." the guard stated reluctantly, standing aside and allowing us to enter.

His indifferent way of speaking made me want to knock him silly, but for the sake of getting in quickly, I bowed my head and refused to look at him, knowing I'd knock his block off if I did.

Heading straight to the control room, I saw Kapri standing in the center of a small bubble with megal and plastic tubing all over the place. She looked terrified and seemed to look for a way out, but otherwise, she remained motionless.

One of three scientists saw us and frowned as he rushed upto stand in front of me. "Hey! This is a restricted area! What're you doing here?!"

"...To do what I should've done earlier..." I said absently, seeing Kapri look at me, and smiling as her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "I'll never know unless I do it." I almost whispered.

The guy gave me a look like I was insane, and blinked blankly. "What are you talking about?"

"I know what I want and what I have to do." Seeing that she was still conscious and seemed ok, I nodded. "There's still a chance. I'm not gonna look back." Glaring at the scientist, I withdrew my gunblade and pointed it in his face. "I'm taking Kapri with me."

"What?!" He laughed angrily and shook his head. "You must be joking! It's too late!" He gestured to the chamber, which was filling with gas, and Kapri who looked terrified, pounding on the glass.

The others drew their weapons and moved to stand by each of the scientists, keeping them from making a move.

"Shane, now's your chance!" Tori called.

Marah nodded. "Go get her, Shane!"

Running through a long hallway, I ound the chamber and saw Kapri holding her hands to her chest as the chamber filled with gas. Pounding on the flass, I frowned when I realized it was unbreakable and glared at the machine. "What do I do?! Come on!" Losing it, I grabbed my gunblade ans swiped at the wires.

The wires split open and a gas escaped into the room. Sheathing my gunblade, I looked into the white gas and smiled as Kapri came running through it with her arms open wide. Reaching out, I pulled her to me and let her hug me as tightly as she wanted, hugging her back just as tight and running my hand through her hair, chanting to myself that I got to her in time.

Suddenly, she shook her head and tried to pull away. "Shane, don't! I'm a sorceress!" she protested weakly.

I shook my head and wrapped my arms around her waist before leaning in and staring into her eyes. "I don't care." I told her honestly. Leaning in further, I kissed her deeply, getting lost in the feel of her warm lips on my own. Tightening my hold on her, I reveled in the feeling of being complete that I got from this.

"Kapri! Shane!" Marah's voice called from the other room.

Pulling away reluctantly, I took a deep breath and held her hand tightly with a smile. "Let's go." I said quietly before hugging her once again and pulling her out of the room after me.

Making our way to the entrance of the Sorceress Memorial, I frowned and quickly withdrew my gunblade as I noticed our friends were surrounded by Esthar soldiers. Suddenly, a large, heavily muscled man with pale skin, dark hair and dark eyes came walking forward, dressed in Esthar robes of a leading official. He gestured to the guards and they lowered their guns, hesitantly moving out of our way so we could pass.

_That man..._ I thought suspiciously as he gave me a grin and nodded with his head for me to follow my friends when they took off. _I've seen him before..._ As Kapri and I walked past him, he nodded again and placed his hands on his hips with a satisfied look in his eyes.

(Ragnarok)

Standing in the meeting room of the Ragnarok, everyone welcomed Kapri back with open arms, especially Marah who clung to her all teary-eyed. Through the whole thing, Kapri seemed awkward but happy, and after a little while, everyone began to notice.

"What's wrong, Kapri?" Tori asked softly.

Looking down, Kapri clearly blushed and gave an embarrassed smile. "I'm just...embarrassed. I mean, I was so set on staying in Esthar, but when you guys came to get me, I was so happy, and-"

"No need to be embarrassed." Hunter stated easily with a grin.

"Yeah! Happy is good!" Marah insisted with a giggle.

"Thank you so much, everyone."

"Shane...you're awefully quiet. What's up?" Dustin asked in confusion.

_Just got a lot on my mind._ I thought with a shrug.

Tori grinned and shrugged in sync. "As an expert Shane observer... He's thinking : What do we do now? Blah, blah, blah. If you think and worry too much, everything'll turn out bad." She sighed and shook her head. "Shane, why don't we just paint a brighter future?"

"...Whatever." I stated blankly.

"But seriously, what _do_ we do, now?" Dustin asked with a frown. "I'm not really sure, but... Don't we have to do something about Lunatic Pandor, in Esthar? After all, the Galbadians are controlling it. Which means that Blake's behind it all, too, right?"

"Blake is...Ultimecia's puppet." I stated quietly. _Unwillingly, too._

"Yeah, and that Ultimecia!" Dustin continued. "We can't let that Sorceress from the future mess up our world! Let's go kick her ass!" By now, he'd completely lost himself in his rant and forgot that one of our team _was_ a sorceress. "We're SeeDs! We're here to destroy the sorceress, right?!"

"DUSTIN!!!" I yelled, grabbing the hilt of my gunblade and getting into his face.

His face paled and he quickly glanced to Kapri, who was looking at the ground silently. "...S-Sorry..." He muttered quickly, looking down in shame.

"So Shane, where we goin'?" Hunter asked as he cleared his throat, obviously trying to change the topic.

"Umm... Can we go to the orphanage you all keep talking about?" Kapri asked quietly.

"That place is a ruin." Tori stated softly. "There's not much to see there."

"Well, I want to stay away from places where there are lots of people." she said with a slight wince. "In case I'm possessed again."

With a nod, I turned to Marah. "Let's go." I stated calmly. "Head to Miko's house."

Turning to Kapri as everyone split up, I watched as she sat down and knelt at her side. "I'm going through so many emotions at once. I'm happy, sad, angry, worried... I'm starting to feel schizophrenic." she stated with a nervous giggle. "Will I never be at peace?"

With a pat to her knee, I got up and left the room, finding Dustin standing outside with a nervous look in his eyes. "Dustin..."

"Look. I didn't mean... I wasn't thinkin' when I said those things in front of Kapri, earlier." He stated with a sigh. "I don't care if she's a sorceress! She's still our friend!"

I nodded a little and gave him an awkward smile, letting him know I didn't hold it against him, before heading off.

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Hope you like it.

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"I'll be waiting here, for you. So, if you come here, you'll find me. I promise."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	45. Mission Planning

**Note** : I tried to keep this as straight forward and simple as I could. I hope it didn't turn out too confusing (in the Esthar part).

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(Miko's House, Flower Field, Kapri's POV)

As we headed to the small, rundown orphanage, I felt a smile come to my lips. Even with this new, painful change, they still trusted me and wanted to be around me. They weren't mad, or disgusted. They still cared.

And this place, I could almost see children living here so happily and peacefully. It had that kind of atmosphere. Even with as ruined as it was, it still radiated love and happiness.

Shane led me to a small side area, and seeing what was there, I gasped as my eyes went wide.

It was the flower field.

The one from my dream, so long ago.

The one where the 'other' me stood, with flower petals swirling all around me as the voice spoke to me.

The flowers were healthy and vibrant, shining full of life, even on a cloudy day, such as this. The sky was dark, full of clouds, but there were breaks where faint rays of sun could pierce through, shining down on the field below. A gentle wind blew by, moving the grass and flowers slightly and stirring up loose flower petals into the air.

"Ahh, this is good. This is very good." Hunter stated easily, staring right at Shane and me.

Shane looked completely lost as he turned to the gunslinger. "What...?"

Pointing to his cheek, he sighed, and then pulled up the sleeve of his shirt and pointed to a bruise. "You see this bruise? I had to put up with a beating from Kapri for you."

I winced and felt my cheeks heat up as Shane looked at me in confusion.

"So seeing you two together makes it all worth it." he finished with a grin.

"Sorry, Hunter." I stated sheepishly, wincing again at the bruise on his arm before he pulled his sleeve back down.

He shrugged and kept on grinning. "Hey, it's ok. Anyway, I'll leave you two alone." Waving, he headed out of the flower field, Angelo following him.

Dustin jumped a little and his eyes went wide. "...Oh! ...Sorry." He grunted a little, rubbing the back of his head.

"About what?" Shane asked cluelessly.

"I'm sure you want to be alone with her. So Shane...I never imagined you as the roman-ah, you know." he stuttered nervously as Shane blushed and glared at him. Shaking his head, he gave a nod and ran off.

"Hmm...I don't get it." Marah stated curiously. "How in the world did you two end up together? You're both polar opposites! I never imagined Kapri's straight forward approach would work." Shrugging, she giggled. "Well, I'm glad I was wrong."

"What about you, Marah?" I asked with my own grin.

"I just like being surrounded by my friends." she stated easily before turning and running out of the flower field.

"This place is beautiful." Tori sighed whistfully, staring out over the miles of flowers in every direction.

Shane nodded and sighed as his eyes softened. "Yeah, it is... I completely forgot it was here."

"Kapri forces herself into your world, no matter how many walls you put up, Shane." she stated wisely, kneeling down to pick a dark blue lily. "I knew I couldn't compete with her." There was no anger in her voice, but an audible longing. "The only question was, would you make a place for her...? You did. Pretty quickly, too."

"Who knows..." I stated quietly, feeling a little unnerved by how easily she was talking about all this. From the look in her eyes, I could tell there was someone she felt the same way for, but her hope for them had dimmed a lot.

"You've changed, Shane, and it's a good change. We owe Kapri for that." she added with a soft smile, smelling the flower she held as a stray, faint beam of sunlight hit it, making it almost glow a slight navy. "It's like Kapri's the only one on your mind." she laughed a little. "Good thing this came _after_ the SeeD exam. I'll leave you two alone, now." Waving a little, she bent down and picked a light blue daisey before turning and walking off with the flowers, a small smile on her face.

Turning back to the field of flowers, I knelt down and ran my hand along the petals of a light red rose bush next to me, recaling faintly, the Shane I knew as the Red Ranger. _So much has happened to me._ I thought sadly. _What's going to happen next? Will I be forced to leave? Allowed to stay?_ I'd fallen for this Shane, and I knew he'd fallen for me, but I was almost afraid of loosing that love.

I knew exactly how he felt because I was sincerely afraid of loosing the newly found comfort of wonderful friends and an amazing love. "What's to become of me?" I asked out loud as I picked a single blooming rose and held it tightly.

"Don't worry about it. There's plenty of good sorceress' out there. Miko was one..." Shane stated as comfortingly as he could.

Jumping a little, I looked at him in surprise, not expecting him to even hear what I'd said. But then, I hadn't realized I'd said it out loud. Giving his words some thought, I stood up straight and sighed. "But Miko's still... I can't guarantee anything, either, if Ultimecia possesses me again. You saw me, what I did in space. What might happen next time? What might I end up doing? Will I end up fighting everyone? ...Scary thought, isn't it?" I giggled nervously.

Shane remained quiet, but I could see the protectiveness in his eyes and after a moment, he gave a small smile. "Kapri... Even if you end up the world's enemy, I'll..." He hesitated and turned a deep red. "I'll be your knight."

Looking to the rose, I thought about Blake, and wondered absently if maybe, a similar thought was on his mind when he first faced Sorceress Miko. It was the 'Matron' they all knew and loved, only it wasn't. Even possessed, did he love her enough, as a mother, to become her loyal knight? I allowed myself a smal smile as I walked up to Shane and gave him a light kiss. "Thank you." I whispered against his lips before pulling back and sighing.

"If I fall under Ultimecia's control again... If I end up fighting everyone... SeeD will come to kill me, right? That's what you were trained to do. It'll be Shane's blade that pierces my heart..." I felt a tear roll down my cheek and smiled at the irony of it all. "I guess it's all right, if it's you, Shane. But only you... Shane, is that ever happens..."

"That's enough!" he snapped, making me jump in surprise. When I spun to face him, I could see the tears in his eyes as he gave me a half-hearted glare. "I'll never do anything like that. The sorceress I'm after isn't you, Kapri." He stated more calmly after taking a deep breath. "It's Ultimecia."

"Ultimecia lives in the future, Shane." I pointed out softly. "She uses my body as an extension into this world. How? How will you save me?"

"I'll think of something." he responded surely.

"I true you..." I said after a moment. "But until then, maybe... Maybe I should stay in Esthar, at the Sorceress Memorial? Wouldn't it be safer?"

He shook his head and snorted a little with a roll of his eyes. "No, it'll just be a waste of time. I'll only end up coming after you, again. Kapri, just stay close to me."

"Oh!" I giggled, recalling when he first said those words to me in Gabadia, right before the Sorceress Assasination attempt. "Those words!"

"What?" he asked in confusion.

I giggled some more and shook my head. "That's what started all this." I stated once I'd calmed down.

"What are you talking about?"

Blinking, I stared into his confused face and felt my eyes narrow. "You don't remember?" I asked suspiciously.

There was a twinkle in his eyes, but his face remained impassive as he shook his head. "Remember what?"

"Oh, just forget it!" I cried in mock irritation.

He grinned and chuckled a little. "Feeling better?"

Nodding a little, I turned and looked out over all the wild flowers. "Yeah. Can I tell you a story?" Looking over my shoulder, I saw him nod and took a deep breath. "I had a dream. It was an odd, but kinda scary dream." _Well, it was a lot of things._ "We make a promise. We promise to see shooting stars together." _Was that it?_

"I get dressed up and put on your ring, but the thing is...the scary thing, is that I can't remember where I'm supposed to meet you." Frowning, I bit my lip and felt my eyes narrow. "I start to panic. I really want to meet you, Shane, but I don't know where to go. I start running. I run through the mountains, desert, the plains... Through Timber, Balamb and Galbadia, but I can't find you! When my legs finally give out, I... I just want to see you so badly! So I scream "Shane! Where are you?!" Then, I woke up. Iwas crying."

Feeling my face heat up, I turned to find him looking deep in thought and looked to the ground in embarrassment. "I'm sorry. You don't have to say anything. I just wanted to tell you."

"It was just a dream..." He muttered quietly, looking at me after a moment. "It doesn't mean anything. Don't worry about it."

Frowning, I nodded hesitantly. "...I guess you're right."

"How about this...?"

Watching him carefully, I noticed as he looked around and closed his eyes before taking a deep breath and looking at me with a small smile.

"I'll be here..."

I bit my lip as a powerful sense of deja vu came over me. "Why...?"

"The reason you couldn't find me is because we haven't promised yet." He looked at me with a thoughtful look. "I'll be waiting here..."

"For what...?" I knew what was coming, but felt myself playing along without really thinking about it. I grinned a little when he raised an eyebrow, but was thankful when he just shook his head and continued.

He looked to the sky and sighed with an almost peaceful smile. "I'll be waiting here, for you. So, if you come here, you'll find me. I promise."

_Just like in my dream..._ "Alright!" I stated cheerfully, with a grin. "Then it's a promise! Thank you, Shane. We'll meet for sure, next time."

Suddenly, Dustin rushed in with a confused and excited expression on his face. Seeing us, he stopped and rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Whoa! Sorry!" Shaking his head, he stared at Shane. "We just got a call from Esthar's Presidential Palace. They got a plan to defeat Ultimecia and want to hire us."

Frowning, Shane looked at me with that protective glint in his eyes. "Could be a trap to get Kapri back in Esthar."

Dustin shook his head. "Oh, and ah...the guy we spoke to, his name's Zack. You think it would be..._that_ Zack?"

"Zack's in Esthar?" He kept frowning and looked at the flowers before bending to pick a beautiful violet tulip. "...Alright. Let's go." He stated with a nod, walking over to me and sliding the tulip into my hair, over my ear. "Even if it's a trap, they're not getting you back." he stated surely before taking my hand and leading me out of the field.

(Esthar, Shane's POV)

If I thought it was bad before, I felt my heart plummet at the sight before me. The amazing, technologically advanced city of Esthar was filled with raging monsters, everywhere. Elvorets ran wild, tormenting some guards, along with every other kind of monster we'd ever faced.

I guess they got the brunt of the monster invasion, despite whatever security measures they had.

The Lifters were off-line because it was simply too easy for monsters to take advantage of the small space to kill us. That, and the fact that there was pressure running through that could change to a deadly force in a matter of moments.

That didn't seem to stop the odd guard from running through as a shortcut, however.

It seemed that the cars were also out of order. Apparently, something was messing with the rental units, making it so that their engines acted in rather random ways. Most wouldn't work, but I watched helplessly as one would start and zoom off, out of contro, down the street and into a building, or the engine exploded on others.

If I had to guess, I'd say the little purple imps with red eyes, running around, had something to do with it.

We by passed most of the city, helping out anyone in need along the way and speaking to randome people as we went, looking for some information.

"There's too many of 'em..."

"Poor man, he's been traumatized."

"He he he. Mua-ha-ha-ha!" one man laughed nervously, as if he had no control over it.

"W-What're we gonna do?!"

"Come on! You want some of this?!"

Eventually, we made it to the Presidential Palace and the guards let us in immediately. Making our way to the designated meeting spot, I felt my eyes widen when I saw two men in Esthar robes, and a third standing with his back to us, looking out a window.

One robed man was black, with black eyes and a knowing grin on his face, twin daggers sitting at his hips.

The other was fair complexioned with brown eyes and brown hair. The same man from the Sorceress Memorial, and on his back sat a giant spear.

The last man was dressed in a beige shirt with black jeans and he had short, spike brown hair, and an old gun sat on the desk.

All three of them men were easily in their late 30's to early 40's.

_Zack...and Jason._ Feeling my eyebrow raise, I finally figured out how I knew who he was. Turning to the third man, I felt a grin tug at my lips as we approached. _And that's probably..._

The floor turned transparent and I stopped cold, being startled and briefly thinking we were about to fall, but we still stood on solid ground and I straightened up, waiting patently as Jason walked over to the third man and made a gesture. _What is up with this country?_

"Oh, sure." The man turned around to show an older version of Tommy with short, spiked hair and wire-rimmed glasses on his face, but he still seemed to have that absent-minded nature about him. Waving briefly, he nodded and smiled. "Hey there. Been waiting to meet you guys. You guys were the ones who were inside my head, right? Kelly told me. It was like there was some kind of waves running through my head..."

_He still likes to talk._ I thought as I barely managed to keep from rolling my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest. I noticed out of the corner of my eye, Kapri barely concealing her laughter at his ramblings.

"They gave us so much power during battles. We thought they were some kind of faeries flying over us." Shaking his head, he grinned wryly. "So, I'm Tommy. President Thomas Oliver of Esthar. Pleased to meet ya. If we weren't in such a state of emergency, I'd love to talk some more..."

_And talk, and talk, and talk..._ I thought as I nodded absently. _And probably talk some more!_

"But, well... Whatever! Let's talk. So, what'cha want to know?"

Zack groaned and shook his head. "You'll never get going if President Tommy keeps talking. So why don't you guys throw out some questions, and we'll try to answer them."

Looking at me, Tommy grinned and shook his head. "Man, you look way too serious!"

"Whatever." I mumbled, thinking of something to ask. "Where's Kelly?"

Nodding a little, Tommy closed his eyes. "What has he done with his life? You might ask. When Kelly was 2, there was a massive hunt for girls in Esthar. Esthar soldiers came to WinHill and Kel's parents resisted. They were killed on the spot."

A jolt of pain ran through me and I watched as he winced as well. At that age, Kelly must've been so confused and scared, not having any idea what was going on, or why those men were attacking her parents.

"The massive hunt was to find a successor to the ruler of Esthar, Sorceress Adel. Kelly was raised by Kat, who lived next door, and I came to know her. Then, there was another massive hunt for a successor in Esthar, once again. Kel was taken away, even though I was there... It was one of the most painful moments in my life. So I rescued her and sent her off to WinHill, and shortly after that, Kat died. And Kelly was sent straight to an orphanage."

_Matron's orphanage, where we got to know her._ "Why didn't you go back with her?"

"I wanted to!" he snapped, before sighing and shaking his head. "But...I have my reasons. I found out about this afterwards, but... The reason Kelly had to leave the orphanage was because of her special power. Doc Odine wanted to research her abilities and sent Esthar soldiers all over the world to find her. The owners, Kanoi and Miko Watanabi, had Kel removed from the orphanage to protect her."

I nodded as I recalled the car that drove Kelly to the beach, where the ship, that I now knew became the base for the White SeeDs, took her even farther away.

"They prepared a big ship to accomodate her, gracious, huh? After a while, the ship turned into another orphanage and Kelly helped take care of all the children. She said her life on the ship was a happy one, but who knows...? I don't know how she could've been happy on a ship..."

_She had a family, and friends._ I thought with a small smile. _And she was the kind of person who'd make the best of everything._

"She was on that ship for over 10 years." Tommy said with a sigh as he leaned against the desk. "The ship was recently attacked by Galbadia, and rescued by an Esthar ship. That's when we met up again."

I felt my eyes widen. _That's why she was smiling when she jumped off the White SeeD ship! What it was she called... I bet it was 'Uncle Tommy!'._

"It was pure luck that we found her. I was out in space at that time. Kelly followed me. Little Kel's all grown up..." His eyes grew teary and he smiled warmly. "Then she told me everything."

_Out in space? So...he must've been the one who told me to look after Kelly!_ I felt myself wince a little at the thought that something might've happened to Kelly. "Did she return safely, from space?"

He frowned and het his head fall to his chest. "Our rescue team was a little late. Kelly was taken into custody by Galbadia. She's inside Lunatic Pandora, but we're gonna rescue her. Help us out, ok?"

I nodded a little. "And exactly what're you doing here?"

"You've been inside my head. You should know pretty much what my life's been like." he pointed out with a raised eyebrow.

Frowning, I lowered my head and closed my eyes, recalling everything we'd been through. "You were a silly Galbadian soldier. I didn't like your attitude one bit, but... I understood the bond between you three. Then, you went to WinHill and everything changed. Kelly was abducted by Esthar and you went on a journey to save her. You wrote articles and appeared in movies just to get by. You were trying to find a way to get into Esthar. You somehow got into Esthar and rescued Kelly."

"I had a lot of help along the way." he stated softly.

"What I don't understand is... Why're you the President?" _Actually, more of 'How did a moron like you become President?'._

"Well, you know I came to rescue Kelly, but that's not the end of my story. Esthar was a country controlled by Sorceress Adel, along with the ingenious, but inhumane Doc Odine. Both of them were interested in Kelly. We couldn't just pack up and leave."

"Doc Odine was only interested in his research. But, while researching under Adel's orders, he made many inventions. One was to deal magic. Maybe, there was a way to defeat Adel. I owed a big favor to the Adel Resistence group who helped me find Kelly. I spoke with my comrads, and two issues came up." He sighed and rubbed his hands over his face wearily.

"First... Stopping the crystal pillar from calling monsters from the moon, and destroying everything, like what happened in Centra. Second...Freeing Esthar from Adel's rule. It took us a long time to plan, even with my brilliant ideas. After a while, we managed to convince Doc Odine to show us how to operate the controls to move Lunatic Pandora, and boom! Set the controls with the stop point in the ocean and it was over. That was easy, but..."

He glanced briefly at Zack and Jason and smirked a little. "We were found out. So, we gathered for one final battle, to lure Adel out. We set up the sealing device and waited for her arrival. I even mentioned Kelly for insurance, knowing she'd enter without a second thought once I did so. And she did."

He explained that it was too dangerous to keep such a dangerous sorceress around, so they decided to send her into space, where it would be nearly impossible for someone to get to her. Tommy also told us that the Ragnarok had two other, identical ships that helped it carry her tomb into space, 17 years ago.

It only served to make me realize just how lucky Kapri and I had been that it had survived and we'd found it.

Tommy then began to chuckle dryly as he told us a story about how they had all kinds of debates on who should be the new ruler of Esthar. Apparently, because he'd zoned out and wasn't paying attention, he'd failed to realize when everyone began to make him out to be some amazing hero. He was chosen to be the new President. He explained about how awefule he felt that Kat had died, and how Kelly had been sent to an orphanage, presumably gone missing, and how his work kept him so busy and his mind so full, before he'd realized it, so much time had passed.

"Well, that's about it."

"Alright. Tell me about this plan to defeat Ultimecia."

"Ahh, straight to the heart of the matter. Just like a workaholic SeeD." Tommy stated with a grin.

"Iz it my turn?"

Turning my head, I watched warily as Doc Odine came rushing into the room. Tommy gave him a glare before sighing and nodding.

"Yeah. Make it short and easy to understand."

"I will take however I vant!" Odine spat at him angrily. Turning to us, he nodded. "Erg, Sorceress Miko told me everything. Sorceress Ultimecia comes from ze future to possess ze sorceress of ze present. Meaning, she leaves her body in ze future and sends only her consciousness back. Does zat sound familiar to you?"

I nodded slowly. "Like how Kelly can send our consciousness' back into the past."

He nodded again. "You are a smart one!" Taking a deep breath, Odine began to explain how everyone thought that it was because of a person in the future who had the same power as Kelly did, to send Ultimecia back, but in truth, it was him. Not him in person, but a machine he built due to all his research on Kelly's powers. pparently, he had a machine made up already, but it was just a 'toy' as he called it, but in the future, it would become an impressive machine.

It was sickening at how excited he got over realizing that our world was in danger because a crazy, psychopathic sorceress from the future found one of his 'toys'. You'd think he realized that if we died, he died, and all his inventions would be in vain, but no. He was all too happy to know that Ultimecia was using one of _his_ creations.

"So Ultimecia became aware of our time due to a machine this psycho made?" I questioned Tommy, pointing to the giddy scientist.

"The Nutty Professor...brought to life." Kapri muttered with a weirded out face.

Tommy nodded and sighed. "Yeah but you can't blame him. It's pointless."

"You vant to go outside?!" Odine snarled at Tommy, raising his hands and bouncing around in an odd display, seeing as how he was so short. "You vant to fisticuffs?!" Nodding after a moment, he turned back to me. "Ok, we can continue with ze story."

Odine explained that the only way to truly kill Ultimecia was to kill her in the future. He went on about how it wasn't possible under normal circumstances, but because of her wanting to compress time, that we could use that to our advantage. Of course, he detoured a lot, going on about why she wanted to compress time and that there was probably many reasons, but he eventually got back on target, when Tommy picked up his gun and aimed it at him with a glare.

"Ultimecia probably needs to go further back into ze past, to achieve Time Compression, which iz why she desperately seeks Kelly. Only Kelly can take her further back. We must take advantage of Kelly's power. There are two sorceress' in our time, Sorceress Kapri and Sorceress Adel. Of ze two, Adel has not awakened yet. Ultimecia will vant to possess Adel, if she wakes up. Zat will be a horrible event!" Indeed, his face paled considerably. "Adel iz horrible sorceress!"

He nodded slowly in Kapri's direction before continuing. "So we must use Sorceress Kapri to inherit Sorceress Ultimecia's power. Zat iz all for ze mission briefing."

Tommy sighed and rolled his eyes. "Bluntly put... Kelly's being held in Lunatic Pandora. Rescue her first. Then kill Sorceress Adel. Sorceress Ultimecia will use Kapri's body to begin Time Compression. With Kelly there, we can use her power to send Kapri and Ultimecia into the past, sending them into Miko or Adel, that is up to Kelly.. Once Kelly feels the effects of the Time Compression, she will cut them off from the past, sending them back to their own times."

I nodded as I watched Kapri's face turn pale at hearing that she had to be possessed again.

"Past, present and future will all be compressed together. No one will be able to exist in that world, but you and her, meaning that towns will be cut off from you, so stock up on whatever you'll need before you leave. You'll keep moving through the Time Compression until you reach her time, where you will come out in her world. It's all up to you after that."

"Are you ready?" he asked softly, looking into Kapri's face.

I followed his gaze and took her hand gently, but firmly, squeezing it lightly to show my support. She gave me a small smile and turned to Tommy. "We're ready." she stated determinedly.

"Alright! Let's assemble on the Ragnarok to finish the mission briefing. I've always wanted to rise on that thing! Plus the name sounds so cool!" he cried like a giddy little boy before he ran off with his friends, leaving us to follow.

Shaking my head, I chuckled a little. _What's with this guy?_

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Ok, well, I'm getting close to the end of the third quarter of the script... Meaning there shouldn't be too many more chapters to come.

Hope you liked it.

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"It's all about love, friendship and courage!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	46. Invading Lunatic Pandora Part 1

**Disclaimer** : I'm not bothering. Nothing's changed.

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(Ragnarok)

Once we made it to the meeting room, Tommy began his speech, reminding us of our mission. His first main point was that when we defeated Adel, she'd need to pass on her powers to another sorceress. This, he looked right at Kapri for. "Would you be willing to accept them?"

She nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah."

"Next, we wait for Sorceress Ultimecia to possess Kapri." He looked at her again. "This will be hard on you. Are you sure you're ready?"

Biting her lip, she reluctantly nodded again. "...Yes."

"That's the spirit! Then Kelly sends Kapri and Ultimecia to the past, bringing only Kapri back to the present. Then you guys head to the future together, through Compressed Time." He sighed a little and shook his head. "Ultimecia lives in a time where none of us can technically exist. There's only _one_ way to _make_ yourself exist there. As friends, don't forget one another! As friends, believe in each other! Believe in your friends' existence and they'll believe in yours! To be friends, to like one another and to love one another... No one can do these things alone. You all need somebody. Right, guys?"

Dustin gave a discreet glance to Marah and blushed when he was caught. Marah blushed for being caght looking at him, and quickly looked to the ground. Hunter looked towards the ruins of Lunatic Pandora thoughtfully. Tori followed his gaze with one of longing and pain.

Without even looking, I reached out and took Kapri's hand, holding it firmly as I watched Tommy with a look I knew was determined.

He nodded with a smile and continued. "What place reminds you of your friends?"

_The orphanage...Balamb Garden..._ I thought absently, immediately.

"Imagine being in that place with all of your friends."

_But Kapri... She wasn't raised in the orphanage or in Balamb. Will that make a difference?_

"Once Time Compression begins, think of that place and try to get there. That's all."

_It doesn't matter. She's become important to all of us. No one would forget her. We'd all will her into existence._

"That place will welcome you. You'll be able to get there, no matter what time period you're in."

_She's important to all of us... To me. I'll never forget her. I _won't_ lose her..._ _And...she's been to the orphanage and Balamb Garden, so that should help._

"You need love and friendship for this mission."

I bit back a grin at the thought. No matter how corny it sounded, it was just a good thing this mission hadn't come earlier. _Love...and friendship. Two things I never used to believe in._

"And the courage to believe it."

_I didn't have that, either._

"It's all about love, friendship and courage! I'm counting on you guys!"

We all saluted him, but for Kapri who smiled and nodded. Then the others left to their stations, leaving me behind to talk to him.

"Love and frienship and all that sounds corny, but everyone seems to be up for it." Plus, though I wouldn't admit, it _did_ make a scary kind of sense.

"You think it'll succeed?" he asked carefully.

I shrugged. _We won't know until we try._ "We'll try."

Heading out of the room, I heard a hiss and turned to find Tommy limping on one leg while holding the other. It looked like his leg cramped up again, and I smirked as I walked off.

_Same old Tommy._

(Cockpit)

As the Ragnarok approached the massive ruin of Lunatic Pandora, I frowned at it. It radiated clearly evil energies and I knew that Blake was in there, somewhere.

"Are the main guns and the cannon ready?" Tori asked seriously as she checked a console.

Marah nodded happily from the piloting seat. "Rrrready! Let's just blast our way in! BOOM!"

Tori began hitting some buttons and the guns popped down as well as the main cannon. All the guns began to fire rapidly, and I watched as a shield seemed to be made visible, but the bullets were making ripples in it. The guns kept firing and some of the bullets managed to getthrough, making small holes in the green rock of Pandora.

Then, the ship hit and we all staggered as we ran head first into the shield.

"WHOO-HOO!" Marah cried excitedly as she stabalized the nose of the Ragnarok and pushed through the barriers.

As soon as it was through, the guns resumed firing and the bullets made many small holes in the ruin. Then, the cannon charged before firing a single beam into Lunatic Pandora, causing a massive explosion and a massive hole in the side.

Dustin operated a few controls and two grappling arms came up from under the ship, hooking on to the edge of Pandora and settling the ship down easily.

"We sure made a huge mess." Hunter stated with a grin.

Tori nodded. "Alright. Let's go, Shane."

Heading off the Ragnarok, our group waded through a mess of green stone and metal . It seemed the green stone rocks were only so thick before leading into passageways made of metal. So far, we were in a large room with paths going in many directions.

"Big sound, this way." came an all too familiar voice as multiple footsteps race in our direction. "It's probably them, ya know?"

"THEM? NO, IMPOSSIBLE!" came the shouted, female response.

Narrowing my eyes suspiciously, I grabbed my gunblade and took up a defensive stand barely noting as the others followed me. _That voice..._ I knew who it was and was torn between feeling respect, knowing they were still helping Blake, at his side... Or being irritated that this likely meant another battle, and one that wasn't as important.

Taylor and Eric ran through one of the paths and approached us with their weapons out.

"Ahhhh!" Eric grinned and turned to Taylor with a smug look. "Is _is_ Shane, ya know!"

She made a face and shrugged. "SHOCK!" Turning to Kapri, she began to grin a little, though her eyes, like Eric's, were weary. "GOOD. CONVENIENT."

"That's right. Hand over Kapri, ya know!" Eric demanded seriously as he held out his double bladed staff.

I shook my head and glared at them as I moved a step closer to Kapri. "No! I'll never hand over Kapri! We're taking Kelly back, too!" Staring at them, I grinned a little. "And we won't let you ressurect Adel, either!"

Eric rolled his eyes and sighed. "You're greedy, ya know!?" he whined loudly. "No fair, ya know?!"

Rolling her eyes, Taylor smacked his arm and held her daggers ready. "PERSUASION USELESS. SEIZE."

Quickly raising my blade, I barely managed to block an attack from Eric, blinking in surprise at how fast he'd moved. Pushing him off, I counter attacked with a spin and a slice before jumping back to dodge an atack from Taylor. There was the sound of something snapping, and I watched as a long, slender object caught her in the arm, making her cry out and drop her daggers as she pulled it out, dodging an attack by Dustin before managing to kick him back.

I turned my head briefly and caught that Kapri had attacked her, knocking her back and distracting her, and grinned a little as I ran towards Eric, casting a Slow spell to make him move slower before casting Triple on myself and slicing him. Backing off, I ducked behind Hunter as he shot at them and prepared three Haste spells to speed part of our group up.

Marah closed her eyes and concentrated, casting a Wall spell on all of us, protecting us from status magics and casting Protect, Shell and Regen on us.

Tori used her Blue Magic to cast Electrocute on them.

I'd just finished casting Haste on the last three members of our group when Eric managed to cure himself of the Slow status and raced forward, slicing Kapri across the stomach and sending her flying.

"Kapri!!"

Spinning to them, I felt my eyes narrow dangerously and felt a rage build up as I turned my full attention on Eric. Taylor rushed at me but I barely noticed as I raised my hand and blasted her with a Thundaga spell. _He's gonna pay...!_ Racing forward, I slashed him as I allowed my momentum to carry me by, before spinning and running back, slashing him again and repeating the process five times in a rough pentagram shape.

Once I was done, I raised my blade to the side and lifted my other hand to the sky, calling on a Phoemix to help me.

The ground below Eric, and since she was so close, Taylor, began to glow and a wall of fire raised up around them. Explosions were seen and heard withing the firey ring, and a loud, piercing cry of a Phoenix was heard.

Suddenly, the ground seemed to erupt and a glowing entity poured out, engulfing them in flames. The giant fire Phoenix screamed again as it held it's orange and red wings out before flapping them and taking off, a shower of golden sparkles flying from it's tail as it disappeared.

Both Taylor and Eric collapsed with severe wounds and I found myself swaying dizzily as the sudden rage and burst of energy faded. _What the...?_ I'd thought I'd mastered all my attacks, but apparently not. Blinking blankly, I looked at my gunblade, noting the faint image of a phoenix on the blade, right by the hilt. I knew that attack, and it was a rare and powerful one.

Fire Phoenix.

The name wasn't anything great, but the attack, though draining, was one of the most powerful out there, and I knew that it was Kapri who helped me find it.

"Shane...?"

Turning to Kapri, I smiled weakly and cast a Cura on myself before shaking my head. Frowning at Taylor and Eric, I sighed and walked over, casting Cures on them both to keep them alive before I walked off with the others.

Though we weren't exactly on the same side, I didn't really blame them for any of this. They were following Blake, who was possessed. Chances were they didn't know that, and would smarten up soon enough.

As we walked the empty corridors, I couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. Last time _I'd_ been here was in Tommy's body, and the place was crawling with moderately difficult monsters and tons of Esthar soldiers.

Now there seemed about three times the monsters and Galbadian soldiers.

Running into a Behemoth, I frowned at the giant monster. It looked like a cross-breed between a rabid wolf and a lion. Huge curved horns adorned it's deep purple head, with a fiery orange mane running down it's back. It stalked up to our group on all four massive, deadly looking paws with huge claws, and snarled at us with teeth dripping yellowish saliva.

Kapri pursed her lips a moment before taking a single step forward.

I knew something was up and remained silent, but took a step forward myself as I grasped my gunblade, not wanting to let her get too far ahead of me.

Closing her eyes, she lifted a hand to her chest and let her head sink down. Faintly, she began to glow a light pink, which grew steadily stronger as she concentrated.

The Behemoth roared and swung at her with one of it's massive claws, but I jumped in the way and blocked the attack with my blade. "Anytime now, Kapri." I muttered quietly, keeping my eyes focused on the monster.

There was a chorus of gasps and I spun to find Kapri's hands by her side and her head hanging limply down, like she was unconscious. The light faded slowly as she rose off the ground, only to burst up again from her back, as a set of pure white angel wings formed and fluttered a little before they began to flap back and forth, keeping her afloat.

Suddenly, her eyes opened groggily, shining a brilliant, glowing blue as she looked up. Her gaze met mine blankly before lifting past me and blinking lazily at the monster behind me. A single eyebrow rose elegantly before she lifted a hand and a fireball shot out, hitting the Behemoth and setting it blazing.

The creature screamed in pain as it writhed, but was unable to escape the flaming inferno and soon collapsed to the ground.

Two more fireballs shot from her hand and one flew behind me, catching a Bite Bug that was sneaking up behind the Behemoth, and the other flying behind our group to split into three and take out a group of Caterchipillars.

Once all the monsters had been destroyed, Kapri slowly lowered to the ground and I walked up to her hesitantly, feeling uncomfortable the way her eyes seemed unfocused.

"...Kapri?" I questioned quietly.

Her eyes focused and she smiled before her eyes closed and she fell limp.

Catching her, I held her carefully and checked her pulse, glad when I found it running strong. Picking her up gingerly, I carried her bridal style through the passageways.

Luckily, there weren't too many ultra powerful monsters like that around, so they were easily taken care of, even with Kapri and me out of the battle temporarily. We soon made it to another chamber, although this one was smaller, and I gaped in shock at the technology that covered the walls of the chamber. But, over time, much of it had rusted, or fallen apart. In fact, it looked like a great battle once raged here.

"Why the hell do I have to take orders from some kid?!" a familiar female voice groaned loudly in frustration.

Exchanging glances with the others, I nodded and placed Kapri into Hunter's arms, turning my back so he could help me place her that way, making it easier to be stealthy. Once she was safely settled on my back, and Hunter _had_ to make a remark about how I should kiss Sleeping Beauty to wake her, we crouched down and snuck along a ledge that led to a small flight of stairs that led down into the chamber.

"Well, he is our superior..." another familiar voice grunted.

There was another groan before a smacking sound and the sound of someone whining. Looking over the ledge, I watched as Toxica glared at jindrax, who was rubbing the back of his head gingerly while warily eyeing the staff in her hands.

"Don't you think I know that?!" she shot angrily. Shaking her head, she replaced the staff on her back and began working on a small control panel, hissing in pain when she got shocked. "I chose the wrong career." she groaned angrily. "Being ordered around by some punk..."

I raised an eyebrow at this, knowing they had to be talking about Blake. Feeling a shifting on my back, I turned my head to see Kapri's eyes flutter open, back to their original light blue. She opened her mouth to say something, but I carefully shook my head and held a finger to my lips.

Jindrax laughed a little. "Well, then why don't you quit?"

Toxica stopped what she was doing and looked lost in thought as she heard him. "Hmmm..."

Scratching his chin, Jindrax shrugged and laughed nervously. "I was just kidding."

She suddenly stood up tall and grinned. "You're right!!!" Turning to him, she laughed and nodded, brushing off her long skirt and hands. "You're absolutely right, I QUIT!!!"

"Uhhh..." He paused and regarded her silently a moment.

Laughing a little, Toxica nodded and grabbed his hand before turning to the stairs near us. "Jindrax, let's go and have a drink."

"Oh...what?! M-Me too??" he asked nervously, looking around quickly before looking back to her.

"Of course, now come on!" she ordered with a smirk, laughing when he jumped and ran straight to her side.

As they climbed the stairs, I stood up slowly, allowing Kapri to slide off my back, and stared at them warily as they approached.

"Oh, it's you guys." For once, Toxica wasn't being cold, but rather friendly. "Don't worry. We're done workin' for Galbadia." Waving, she dragged a protesting Jindrax off and disappeared down another path.

"Well..." Tori looked about as baffled as I felt as we all watched the duo run down the halls. Jindraz kep trying to turn around and run back until Toxica smacked him on the head with her staff again. "That was..."

"Freaky?" Dustin supplied with a weirded out face.

Marah nodded. "Yeah. Is it me, or is there like, some kind of romance goin' on there...?" Shuddering, she stuck her tongue out and made a face. "Ewww!"

Raising her eyebrow, Tori laughed a little before shaking her head. "Actually, I was going to say 'unexpected', but freaky works."

Shaking my head, I allowed a grin as I walked across the chamber and we made our way further towards the Crystal Pillar in the heart of Lunatic Pandora.

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Hope you liked it.

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"We are. We always will be."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	47. Invading Lunatic Pandora Part 2

**Note** : Ok, so I basically changed the part with Blake. I'll tell you how after the chapter...

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(Near the Crystal Pillar, Kapri's POV)

So, now I've accessed my sorceress abilities. It was kind of nice to wake up and knowing that Shane was there, protecting me, but at the same time, I felt like I was only getting in the way. What kind of sorceress accesses her special powers and faints afterwards?

Angel Wing.

Aptly named.

I don't remember too much. Tori said it was like I was on Berserk. I knew who the enemies were, but was attacking them uncontrollably. Luckily, I wasn't under Confuse, or I would've killed my friends.

That possibility frightens me.

I had large, white angel wings appear on my back and my eyes glowed with energy. Would've been _more_ useful if I could remember anything. It was like a dream. I could kind of see it happening, but with no control over it. I knew Shane was in front of me, and my powers seemed to feed off my desire to protect the ones I love and care for.

Anyway, we'd run into Toxica and Jindrax about an hour ago, and I was all set to fight them, when they promptly quit. Well, Toxica quit and then dragged Jindrax behind her as she walked off.

Now, as we walked along a big passageway that separated into many other passageways, resembling a spider web as they lifted in all directions, I felt my anxiety build with every step we took, knowing we were growing closer and closer to Sorceress Adel.

Also, I tried not to look up, or rather...down.

As I stated, the passageways went in all directions. Have you ever seen one of those large rooms with staircases that led up, down, side to side, and diagonal? You know, where you can walk upside down and not fall to the ground.

It was just like that.

We could walk on any of the paths and each one seemed to have a special gravity to it, keeping us from falling to our deaths.

Still, it didn't help our nerves much.

Soon, we managed to make it to a large chamber, and Dustin frowned thoughtfully.

"Hey! This is the place that thing blasted us outta here!" he cried in recognition.

There was thee sound of running footsteps and Taylor and Eric showed up, running to a large ledge.

"We meet again, ya know?" Eric put in with a grin. "We'll take you on, ya know?!"

I watched as Shane frowned and winced and I knew he was reconsidering the Cure he'd cast on them earlier.

Then, I switched my gaze to them and noticed as Taylor looked to the floor thoughtfully, with a frown. Shaking he head, she held up an arm. "NOW, NO FIGHT. NEXT TIME." she stated in her loud voice. There was a hint of regret in her eyes as she hit a button on a console beside her.

Eric frowned and looked at her in confusion before noticing what she was doing and grinning again. "That's right." Turning to us. he waved. "We have surprise, ya know!!" he called.

There was a loud beeping and a large, yellow machine lowered from the ceiling with two smaller, yellow balls on either side of it. It had one eyes and a set of metal shields over it's body. As it hovered in front of us, Taylor shot us a guilty look before taking off with Eric, and leaving us to fight the thing.

Immediately, Shane closed his eyes and raised his hand in front of his face, casting Triple on himself before hastily casting Haste on him, me and Hunter. Then, he repeated the process on Marah, Tori and Dustin.

Tori closed her eyes nd used her Blue Magic to cast Mighty Guard, protecting us from physical, and magical attacks.

Dustin ran forwards and flipped off a nearby ledge to catch leverage, doing a complete punch and kick combo before landing on his hands and spinning, kicking the larger machine as he flipped back.

Hunter loaded some explosive shots into his rifle and fired at the two metal balls, taking them out with major damage.

Closing my eyes I cast three Thundagas on it, not wanting to use my Angel Wing attack just yet, if I could help it. Afterwards, I cast three more in rapid succession, knowing it was damaging the thing.

Shane ran forward and slahed it multiple times, using a couple of his stronger attacks to weaken it.

Beeping loudly, the machine rose a little into the air before two side compartments opened and cannons came out. It fired at us, and I was barely able to avoid the shots, but Hunter, Dustin, Shane and Tori were hit and knocked out right away.

"Shane!" I yelled as I watched him fall.

"I don't think so!"

Turning my head, I watched as Marah glared at the machine before closing her eyes and raising her hands to her chest. Getting what she was doing, I turned and fired my crossbow before firing three more Thundaga spells on it, keeping it distracted.

"Full-Life!"

I looked over my shoulder as Marah raised her hands to the sky and a light shone down on our friends, ressurecting them and healing their wounds fully. Heaving a sigh of relief, I turned and shot three more spells that the machine, watching as combined attacks from Tori, Shane and Dustin finally took it out and we backed away as it floated off before exploding.

Once we made sure everything was all right, we continued on our way, following the same path Taylor and Eric had taken when they ran off. Who knew if we were running into a trap, but either way, we'd face whatever was coming, together.

(Lunatic Pandora Master Room, Shane's POV)

As we entered a large room, I frowned deeply at seeing Blake sitting comfortably in a throne-like chair at the top of a large flight of stairs. He was sneering evilly, and the purple glow in his eyes was easily visible by now. Tapping his gunblade against his hip with one hand, he gestured to the bottom of the stairs with the other and leaned back a little, placing his chin in his free hand.

Switching my gaze to the bottom of the stairs, I felt my eyes narrow as Taylor and Eric walked in front of us, Eric holding Kelly tightly by the arm. Taylor refused to meet our gaze, but Eric stared at us defiantly.

Nodding a little to Kelly, I turned to Blake and felt my whole body tense. "We've come for Kelly!"

He grinned and shrugged. "Looks like we got company. Guys, show 'em your hospitality." he stated in a bored tone.

Eric began to slowly walk towards us, when Taylor's head shot up and she turned to him. "ERIC, STOP!' she ordered firmly as she grasped Kelly's arm in his stead.

Blake frowned and his head lifted a little in pure confusion as he stared at his companions. "What's up?"

Sighing, Eric turned to him and frowned as he crossed his arms over his chest. "We've had enough, ya know?" he stated softly, guiltily.

Taylor released Kelly and nodded in our direction. "GO." she stated simply.

Not needing to be told twice, Kelly ran towards us and I embraced her warmly, glad to have my Sis back. Pulling away, I looked into her eyes and smiled a little. "Go wait outside, Tommy should be here soon."

Her eyes lit up and she nodded with a smile of her own, taking off out of the room to wait for her 'Uncle' Tommy.

"Hey, hey..." Blake stood up and glared at us befor his gaze turned to his friends. "Come on, people." he demanded angrily.

"Blake... We're quittin', ya know?" Eric stated softly, refusing to meet his eyes. "Don't know what's right anymore, ya know?"

"Exactly my thoughts." he snarled from in front of the chair, holding out his gunblade threateningly. "I thought we were a posse."

Taylor took a step forward and nodded sadly, tears glittering in her eyes as she gripped Eric's arm lightly. "POSSE..." Taking a deep breath, she looked at Eric, who nodded encouragingly before turning back to Blake. "We are. We always will be." she stated in a surprisingly quiet voice as she stared at him earnestly. "Because we're a posse, we want to help you. Whatever it takes for you to fulfill your dream, we'll do."

I felt my heart beat painfully as Blake seemed pained for the briefest of moments for glaring once again.

"But..." Shaking her head, Taylor sighed. "You're being manipulated, Blake. You've lost yourself, and your dreams. You're just eating out of someone's hands."

Tori nodded and took a step forward. "We all just want the old Blake back." she almost whispered, giving a shaky smile to Taylor who semed surprised by her words.

Taylor glared at Blake sadly before heaving a heavy sigh. "Since we can't get through to you, all we have now, to rely on, is Shane! It's sad... Sad that we only have Shane to rely on."

I glared at their backs, ignoring as Kapri and Marah tried to muffle their giggles, and Hunter and Dustin grinned cheekily. "I'm right here..." I muttered under my breath, shaking my head to Tori who gave me a weak grin.

"Blake! Are you still gonna keep goin'?!" Taylor cried.

He seemed to think about it for a moment, and I knew that if he was in his right mind, he'd say 'no' and leave, but the purple glow in his eyes flared up and he shrugged before grinning and walking halfway down the flight of stairs. Saluting his friends, he chuckled a bit. "Taylor, Eric! It's been fun!"

Frowning at him, Taylor sighed and took Eric's hand, leading him out of the room and leaving us alone.

Staring at Blake, I felt my eyes narrow and unsheathed my gunblade, holding it in front of me to keep him from getting too close. I also noted that Kapri moved closer to my side, but remained glaring at him. "Are you going to continue with this knight thing?" I asked curiously.

He shrugged again as he walked down to us and shook his head with a chuckle. "The knight has retired. I guess you could call me a revolutionary."

"What do you think you're doing?!" I demanded.

He stared impassively at me. "I've always gotta be doing somethin' BIG!" he stated, turning his back to us and raising his hands to the sky as he laughed. "I don't wanna stop." Turning to us, he sneered and laughed again. "I'm gonna keep runnin'! I've come this far... I'm gonna make it to the end, to the goal!" Then, he pointed his gunblade at us again and grinned as he advanced towards me, only to be stopped when I easily raised my blade, pressing it against his and stopping his advance. "There's no way I'm sharing it with you!" he cried, pushing hard all of a sudden.

Staggering off balance, I stumbled back a foot, barely dodging a swipe at my head and rolling backwards, out of the way. There was the sound of a whip snapping and a crossbow firing and looking up, I watched as Blake glared and hissed in pain, clutching at his wounded arm where Kapri's bolt had struck him. Pulling the bolt out, he threw it to the ground and grinned evilly, holding out his hand and gesturing for us to bring it.

Dustin raced forward and dodged Blake's attacks while countering with his own. Pummeling the gunblade specialist, he flipped and kicked him in the chest before racing back, being protected by Marah and Tori who snapped their weapons at Blake to distract him.

Kapri whistled, calling Angelo, and the dog howled at a full moon, covering us with a temporary invincible shield. Once he was done, Angelo disappeared and Kapri summoned Shiva to use Diamond Dust.

Hunter followed suit by calling Ifrit, followed by Diablos.

Staggering back from the GFs' attacks, Blake glared at us as he wobbled and raised his hand, casting a powerful Firaga spell on Dustin. As the martial artist stumbled back, winded by the spell, Blake rushed at Hunter and slashed at him, but Hunter fired a well placed shot at him, knocking him back.

Shaking my head, I decided to pull Blake's own trick on him and cast Meltdown before running forward as the spell was in the midst of doing it's damage, and slashed him across the chest, sending him back a few feet where he stood shakily, his gunblade falling to the ground at his side.

"Is this...the end...?" he asked weakly with a frown as he collapsed.

I immediately looked to Kapri and noticed her frown as she exchanged a look between Hunter, Tori and Blake. Raising my eyebrow, I caught her eye and listened as she briefly explained.

"In my world, Blake and Hunter are adopted brothers, and Blake and Tori are head over heels for each other."

Tori blushed deeply and turned, leaving the room silently, but with a pained air everyone could feel.

Hunter frowned and looked at Blake in confusion, clearly not getting what she meant. Then again, he also didn't know anything about Kapri being from another world, so that would be fun to explain later.

"Blake..." Sighing quietly, Kapri grasped the chain around her neck that held both my ring and his, before turning and walking out of the room, followed by Hunter and Dustin.

Turning back to Blake, I rolled my eyes. Then, I took a step back and grasped my gunblade tightly as he slowly stood up, shaking his head and glaring at me.

"Not yet!" he hissed quietly. "It's not over yet!"

Running out of the room, there was a series of thuds and a scream, before Kapri's panicked voice carried through to me.

"Shane!!"

"Kapri?!" Spinning on my heels, I turned to find the others racing in, Hunter with a bruise already forming on his cheek, and Dustin standing groggily, shaking his head every now and then with a dazed look.

"Shane! Blake took Kapri!" Tori called in worry.

"Let's go after them!" I called as I raced out of the room.

(Kapri's POV)

Ok, so maybe walking away from Shane was a bad idea. I probably gave him the impression I was in love with Blake, which I'm not, and I ended up learning the hard way that I wasn't as safe without him nearby.

First of all, I left because seeing Blake lying there, badly wounded and fighting as our enemy... Seeing the look of triumph on Hunter's face, and then being reminded of the loyal brothers from earth... It was all too much. Part of me wanted to demand what Hunter's problem was, but then I reminded myself that they weren't brothers here. Hell, they weren't even _friends!_

Then, seeing the look of pain etched into Tori's face as Blake collapsed, I was reminded of the torture the two went through on earth and how they always managed to pull through it. It was obvious to me, this Tori had feelings for this Blake, but what I didn't know was if he returned them.

I mean, he seems to have feelings for me...

But... Well, it's all just confusing and painful to be a part of. So, I left. I decided to wait for them outside of the room.

Bad idea.

Really bad idea.

The others joined me soon enough. Well, most of them. Marah and Shane stayed behind in the room with Blake. But, it only took a moment before I heard a shout and turned to find Blake racing towards me.

All I could do was take a step back in surprise, and watch in shock as he quickly took out the others, leaving only Tori unharmed, for reasons... Well, I guess he had feelings for her. Feelings so powerful, they could overcome whatever was wrong with him.

Next thing I knew, I felt a painful grip on my arm and screamed as Blake dragged me away from the others. Tori tried to come after us, but a light shone on her and brought her to her knees.

Undoubtedly, the work of Adel.

"Shane!!" I called in a panic. Would my hero be able to come and save me? Biting my lip, I felt bad for all the times he had to be my hero and frowned as I turned to Blake. "Blake! Stop it!" I cried, stiffening up in fear when he raised his gunblade to my throat and glowered at me. "Haven't you done enough?!" I pressed on. "I know you're not like this!" Seeing that it wasn't working, I thought frantically. "What about Tori?!"

That made him pause and his gunblade wavered as a look of doubt and pain washed over his face. The pruple glow faultered in his eyes and he snarled as it intensified, taking another step forward and dragging me with him.

I saw my chance and pressed further. "You're hurting her with all this!"

His eyes narrowed and he opened his mouth to say something before shaking his head. The gunblade lowered even more and his grip loosened a bit as tears came to his eyes. "I..." He swallowed heavily and took a deep breath, closing his eyes and seemingly trying to concentrate on something.

I knew he was battling the control within him. "Blake, you don't want to do this." I stated more softly. "Think about it."

He frowned deeply and shook his head again, his hand falling away from mine as he took a step back. He glowed a bright pink, which quickly turned into a dark, muddy purple, and after a moment, the light shattered like glass, falling away from his body.

"...Blake?" I asked carefully. _Did it work? Is he free?_

"Sorry." he muttered quietly, opening his eyes a little and offering a weak smile. "Tell her...I'm sorry." Turning, he stalked off, leaving me alone in a long hallway.

Part of me was tempted to go after him, but I was afraid. Afraid he'd be possessed again and try to drag me to Adel. Afraid of being put in danger, or having something happen. Afraid for Shane.

"She loves you, you know!" I called absently as I carefully grasped my chain.

He slowly turned and gave a small nod and genuine smile. He knew who I was talking about, and from the look in his face, I knew he felt the same.

Taking the chain off, I slid his ring off it before re-fastening it around my neck and throwing him the ring. "You better come back to her!"

Catching the ring easily, he looked at it uncertainly a moment before sighing heavily and closing his hand tightly over it. I could see him shaking and he nodded quietly before turning and leaving the room completely.

"I'll hold you to that." I stated quietly. Hearing footsteps running in my direction, I turned to find Shane and the others racing into the room.

"Kapri!" Shane caled in relief, racing forward and hugging me tightly before kissing me lightly and then looking me over for injuries, making me blush.

"I'm all right." I said softly.

"How'd you get him to let you go?" Tori asked curiously.

I gave a small smile. "I made him remember someone important to him." I watched as Dustin and Hunter looked clueless, Tori looked uncertain and possibly a little jealous and Shane just looked completely jealous. Giggling a little, I shook my head and gave Tori a pointed look. "Not me! A certain blonde haired former Instructor."

Now everyone turned to Tori who looked shocked and blushed deeply. Looking away, she sighed. "Don't we have a sorceress to fight?"

Grinning, I grabbed Shane's arm and nodded seriously, sobering up as I remembered everything that was coming our way. "...We should go."

He nodded slightly and took my hand before we headed off, looking for Adel's room.

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Ok, so in the actual game, Seifer (Blake) never broke free at this point and dragged Rinoa (Kapri) to Adel, who fused with her. The hero's group had to fight Adel while taking care to mind when Rinoa got weak, since Adel often syphoned life out of her to stay healthy. Now, as you saw, Blake broke free, and since Kapri isn't possessed, he won't get possessed again, that way.

There's no actual romance shown/proven between Quistis (Tori) and Seifer (Blake), but since it's my story, I want there to be... Plus, it kind of made me think of Thunder Strangers and Blake's quilt for betraying Tori there. LOL. And look at that...he left again! LOL.

Hope you like it.

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"Kelly! Now's your chance!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	48. Time Compression

(Adel's Chamber, Shane's POV)

Once we made it to Adel's chamber, the first thing we noticed was the large tomb across from us. Within it, a giant woman, at least 8 feet tall, was bound. She had pale blue skin, red, glowing eyes that leered at us, long red hair up in a messy bun, and a fangy grin that spread even wider as we entered the room.

Stopping cold about ten feet from her, I withdrew my gunblade and watched her carefully, fully aware that she was awake and biding her time.

Her form began to move a little, wriggling back and forth like a worm as she struggled to break free of the bonds. Cords snapped away, flinging across the room to land on the floor, and her one arm was freed.

Suddenly, it shot out with a lightning speed, aiming directly for Kapri, but I managed to jump in front of her and swung my blade in an arc, stopping her attack.

Hissing in pain, Adel struggled even more and managed to free her other arm as well. She glared at me and swung out with her arm, cackling evilly as it stretched to inhuman lengths and shot towards me. Parrying with my blade, I countered with quickly casting Triple on myself and then casting Protect on Kapri, Marah and myself.

Marah quickly closed her eyes and concentrated before lifting her arms to the sky and calling out a spell. "Hasteaga!"

A red light glowed around us all, speeding us up and making it easier to keep up with Adel's lightning quick attacks.

Closing her eyes, Kapri used her Angel Wing attack, floating in the air and staring at Adel indifferently as she quickly cast spell after spell. Seeing as the battle field was too unstable to fight the sorceress hand-to-hand, I stuck to powerful Meltdown and Ultima spells.

Hunter used his rifle, saving up on his magic, and Dustin cast Holy and defensive spells.

Marah used her special attack to call upon Wall, to protect us further, and Tori used her Blue Magic to cast White Wind, casting regenerative magics on us.

Struggling again, three more bonds broke. Still, dozens surrounded her torso, keeping her immobile, but she continued to struggle and was successfully snapping them one at a time.

Kapri's gaze faltered as she stared at Adel and she dropped an inch, her hand falling to her side briefly, but just as quickly, it was back up and her spells were resumed.

I kept up casting Meltdown, as it did the most damage, and took an Ether to replenish my strength before tossing one to Dustin, who looked ready to collapse.

Adel swung out with her clawed hand and aimed for Marah, but she jumped over the swinging hand and ducked under the other one as it came back. Rolling back a little ways, she landed on her knees and cast Blind and Silence on Adel, to slow her down a little.

Shaking her head, Kapri's gazed turned a little unfocused as she struggled to remain afloat. Raising her arm, she cast three quick Holys before her arm dropped and her wings disappeared, sending her to her knees.

Frowning, I switched my gaze to Kapri and took a single step towards her before shaking my head. _This... It may be Ultimecia..._ I thought uncertainly, wanting to go over and protect her. But... _If that's the case, this is what we want...right?_

Letting out an inhuman screech, Adel fell back from the on-slaught of powerful spells. She writhed violently as her eyes dimmed and she raised a hand, shooting it once again at me.

Dodging the attack, I watched as her struggling grew weaker as a pale red light formed around her body. Her gaze travelled to Kapri and her eyes narrowed as the light floated away from her, going over and enveloping Kapri in it's light.

Finally, Adel's eyes lost any light of life and she collapsed, hanging limply from the remaining bonds.

Kapri, who was on her knees, slowly stood up and began to sway as she stood in place.

I felt a shiver run up my spine as I slowly sheathed my gunblade. It was just like back on the lunar Base. Multiple images of Kapri, in varying states, swayed behind her like a wave.

Hearing footsteps run in, I briefly cast a glance over my shoulder and watched as Tommy ran in with Kelly, Zack and Jason a few feet behind him.

He took one look at the situation and nodded grimly before turning to Kelly. "Kelly! Now's your chance!"

Nodding quickly in response, she closed her eyes and glowed white for a moment as she activated her special ability.

Kapri's eyes fluttered close and she fainted dead away. She would've hit the ground, but I rushed forward and managed to catch her, holding her tightly.

Placing his hand on her shoulder, Tommy nodded again. "Ok. Now just bring Kapri back." he instructed softly.

With a slight groan, Kapri stirred and her eyes fluttered open, back to their normal blue and focused again. As Tommy rubbed Kelly's head affectionately, I helped Kapri up and held her lightly as she regained her balance.

"I...was inside Adel... The young Adel." Kapri said weakly as her eyes narrowed in confusion.

Tommy nodded grimly. "Ultimecia's inside Adel. Exactly as she wanted. Ok, this is the final showdown, folks!" he ordered sternly. "Time compression is about to begin! 'Love, friendship and courage'. Show 'em what you got!"

Kelly cast a meaningful glance at Hunter, who blushed, before being dragged out of the room by Tommy, leaving us to whatever effects this time compression was going to have.

"So, like... What exactly are we waiting for...?" Hunter asked curiously, glaring and blushing when Dustin and Marah shot him sly grins.

As he asked, the entire room began to..._melt_ away. Everything drooped, and the floor eroded away beneath us, plunging us into a dark nothingness. As we fell, I noticed that everything began to lighten. Soon, I realized, we were in a sky, and the sun was rising in the distance, revealing a fairly clear sky as birds flew by.

"I just had to ask." Hunter muttered with a face.

The only thing really wrong with this picture, was that we were no longer falling, but floating in the air. That, and large bubbles of images began to float by.

Looking closely, I noticed that the images were my memories. No, not just mine. There was a memory of a little blonde girl I recognized as Tori, talking to a little dark skinned and haired boy I recognized as Blake, with a smile. I looked at Tori and noticed how her eyes watered as she stared at that image.

Another one floated by of a little brunette girl, I recognized as Marah, talking to two children as a dirty blonde boy I recognized as Hunter, came up to her with a stuffed bear. The children jumped for joy at seeing it and rushed over and hugged him, taking the bear and rushing off with Marah in tow. That was followed by a slightly older girl with red hair I recognized as Kelly coming over and saying something to him, followed by a quick hug and smile before she turned and went in a different direction, leaving him blushing.

Hunter had a small smile on his face as he watched that memory float by.

Then, there was one of a little brunette boy being tortured by the younger Blake. I recognized Dustin easily. He was crying and yelling at Blake to stop being mean, when Marah came over and pushed Blake, glaring at him and saying something quietly that made Blake sneer and walk off, before she turned to Dustin and hugged him.

Dustin blushed and rubbed the back of his head nervously and Marah giggled at seeing it.

And then, there were memories that made me frown in confusion, but a look at Kapri's face explained them.

People in colored suit with laser weapons, fighting unusual monsters. Some turned out to be Tori and Blake, or Dustin and Cam. Then, there was even me and Hunter. One memory had them all in leather outfits and using strange powers to control the elements. Sometimes, Hunter and Blake rode around on strange motorcycles, on dirt paths. Others, Tori was out in the ocean on a surf board. And still others, _I_ was rolling across the ground on a skateboard.

_Me_...on a _skateboard_?!

There was a girl with strange hair up in two large 'balls'. After a moment, I recognized Marah, and blinked a moment as I watched her pout at someone whom I couldn't see.

Was this what she used to be a part of? Was this her world the other other versions of us that she knew?

A woman with pink hair entered, carrying a sword with an evil smirk. It took a second look for me to recognize Kapri and I blinked in shock, turning to the Kapri I knew and watching as she winced at that memory. Looking back and forth between them and the other images, I shook my head and deemed it too much to think of at the moment. It was all in the past, anyway.

Besides, I liked this Kapri better.

"W-Where do we go?!" Hunter called nervously as the bubble memories grew overwhelming in number.

I quickly took Kapri's hand and held it tightly, to make sure she didn't fall into one of these memories. Diving into a memory of myself on the back porch of the orphanage, I turned to the others as I swam through it like water. "To Miko's House!"

The images faded as I turned and swam and it turned out to be deep in the middle of a large ocean, but I could still breathe, as though I was in the air. Fish with wings floated by and I dove down deeper, heading for the bottom of the ocean.

"I'll...probably disappear." Kapri stated softly.

I shook my head and pulled her to me, looking into her eyes sternly. "Just stay close to me! I won't let you disappear!" I vowed sincerely.

We continued to swim down through the breathable ocean, heading for the bottom, when we ended up coming out the surface and flying through the sky, instead. It was a light blue now, and had more clouds, and as we flew, no, _swam_ through the air, large flocks of birds passed all around us.

The image slowly began to melt and spin, swirling faster and faster like a vortex, and we all cried out as we were sucked into it. I felt like being pulled apart from all ends. Tension that built up within me as though I were being electrocuted.

As the sensation faded, we were left in a large, dark room that slowly lit to reveal the Presidential Palace in Deling City. Long, gauzy curtains hung from places in the celing, and the big double doors remained, leading into the next room. Down the hallway behind us, I could clearly see the spinning vortex, slowly making it's way in our direction.

It was a choice.

Go back to the vortex and risk being torn apart by the time compression, or go through the door and face god-knows-what. For all I knew, another vortex awaited on the other side.

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath, and still holding Kapri's hand, I led her through the doorway, walking into the center of the next room before I stopped cold and stared in shock at what was in front of me.

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A much shorter chapter, but I basically wanted this one to be about time compression alone, and it's effects.

Sighs I still don't own it. If I did, I'd be the happiest girl alive.

Hope you like it.

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"...Future SeeDs... We're fighting across generations..."

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	49. The Future?

(Time Compression)

Sitting in a throne-like chair, with her back to us, was a single sorceress, but... It wasn't Ultimecia.

I recognized the familiar female form all too well as she slowly placed her hands on the chair and stood up straight. Miko. _Sorceress_ Miko. But, as she turned to face us, I felt a shiver run up my spine involuntarily as I saw her face.

Black, empty holes stood where her eyes should be, and a fangy smile took over her face, spreading inhumanly wide as tentacles sprouted from her back and she split into four. The dress altered into a red halter gown on a demonic sorceress, and an eery, echoing laugh reverberated through the room as the four sorceress' raised their hands and cast a hail of ice blades at us.

Luckily, we managed to dodge the worst of the attack, only suffering minor cuts as the sorceress' laughed again, in sync, as though they were one being.

Grabbing my gunblade, I raced forward and slashed at one sorceress multiple times before running to the next and following suit. After I attacked each, I ran back to my spot and raised my gunblade to the sky, concentrating my energy as a beam of light erupted from it, leading off the world and into space.

Bringing my blade crashing down, the resulting energy wave caused a massive explosion and all four sorceress' fell.

...Only to be replaced by four more.

Groaning, Hunter raised his rifle and riddled the battlefield with shots as the scene around us changed. The interior of the Presidential Palace melted and changed to the empty streets of Timber, the new battlefield settling into place as Dustin was hit by an energy blast and set careening into a nearby lamp post.

Kapri cast Triple on us all before beginning on the protective magics, and Tori used her Blue Magic to take care of the four new sorceress'.

And still, four more replaced them.

"What the hell?!" Dustin demanded, shaking off a hit and racing forward to vault over a sorceress and attack her from behind.

Kapri's eyes widened as she shot at the sorceress nearest her, with her crossbow. "Don't these things stay dead?!"

Marah sighed and cast Ultima on them all, destroying them completely.

...Four more took their places.

"Ok, this is _seriously_ starting to piss me off!" I growled, unleashing another ultimate attack on them and taking them out. Raising an eyebrow, I shook my head and quickly took a Potion. _At least they're easy enough to beat._

This time, when the four were beaten, an empty, echoing laughter raced through the area as the scene melted away, and we found ourselves on a massive beach. A light shone from above and two larger, more mutated and seemingly more powerful sorceress' descended from the sky, like they were floating.

Blinking a moment, I sighed and rolled my eyes. _Spoke too soon._ Racing forward, I slashed at the nearest one multiple times, ducking as I sensed Dustin racing in from behind me and rolling to the side as he began his volley of punches and kicks. Turning my attention to the other sorceress, I waited until Marah and Tori slashed her with their weapons before racing in and finishing my attack on her.

As I jumped out of the way, a cannon ball made of fur flew past me, and I watched as Angelo glowed brightly as he hit the sorceress', bouncing off them to roll away and run off.

They were, luckily, only slightly tougher than the last sorceress' though, so they soon fell.

And surprise, surprise, two more floated down to replace them as the battlefield changed again, this time, into Esthar city streets.

We kept fighting the seemingly endless number of sorceress', and soon, stronger ones took their places, as the scene kept meltiing away to reveal someplace else. It changed from Esthar to the Training Facility in Balamb Garden, to Balamb, to FH, The Galbadian Prison, Fire Cavern, and WinHill.

Finally, one large sorceress came down, horribly mutated beyond any possible resemblance of a human, and the battlefield changed into a dark, foreboding looking place that I'd never seen before.

Casting our most powerful magics and using our strongest attacks, we soon took this final sorceress down and I'm sure we _all_ breathed a sigh of relief as the scene finally changed to Miko's House and the eery battles ended.

Still, seeing the change in scenery, I felt a frown come to my face as I saw the number of White SeeDs lying dead on the ground. There were giant, thick chains that held a floating castle in place, and my eyes narrowed as I looked up at the dark thing, seeing black lightning flashing through the sky all around it.

Changing my glance to the SeeDs, I closed my eyes and shook my head. "Future SeeDs... We're fighting across generations." I muttered out loud.

"And that's not all." Kapri stated with a clearly shaky voice as she looked at something else.

Following her gaze, I saw what looked like the rusted, long destroyed remains of a giant machine. The thing was easily the size of the castle itself, if not bigger, and vaguely resembled a yellow lion. Beside it, other machines laid in similar condition. A red hawk machine, a blue dolphin, and two giant bettles that looked so badly rusted, their colors were even faded beyond recognition.

But that wasn't what she was looking at.

It was six figures on wooden crosses, clearly long dead. They were displayed there, like some kind of sick symbol.

"What...?" I couldn't even finish the question as I took in their appearance.

One in a red uniform, looking exactly like something I'd seen from one of Kapri's memories, with a gunblade on his waist, hung limply nearby and I watched as she winced and her eyes filled with tears, even as her face paled.

"They're..." Shaking her head, she took a deep breath. "They _were_ Power Rangers." Taking in the weapons on each one, her face changed to one of confusion. "But I don't think they're the ones from earth. The weapons are different."

And shockingly similar to ours.

The feminine form in light blue carried a whip that was tied around the top of the cross she hung on. A yellow, male figure carried gloves with metal knuckles. There was a green form that held a sword, that looked a lot like a rusted katana, and the navy form also carried a gunblade. Finally, the crimson form held a rifle strapped to his back.

Shaking my head, I took Kapri's hand and carefully pried her gaze away from the figures as I turned, seeing the others' glances changing from their weapons, or weapons the others were holding, to the figures and back, in horror.

Swallowing heavily, I looked to the castle. "Ultimecia's reign... We have to end it now." I stated firmly.

I led the way up the thick chains, finding it easy to climb and not a good sign that we didn't run into any monsters on the way. As we ascended to the main gate, I let my mind wander over the forms I'd just seen.

_...Kapri stated they were Power Rangers. But, on her planet, _we_ were the Power Rangers. And those weapons..._ Biting back a wince, I kept walking determinedly. _Is that our future? Those strange powers?_

_...Ultimecia _has_ to be stopped!_

Finally making it to the door, I waited as the others caught up and glanced over them, allowing myself a moment to relax when I noticed they were all there and all alright, if a bit out of breath. "Good. We all made it." _I was a little worried._

Looking at the castle, Dustin had to tilt his head back to see the top of it and took a step back in apprehension. "...Whoa!... So this is Ultimecia's castle?!"

"Finally." Marah muttered as she checked her nun chucks and items.

Hunter nodded thoughtfully. "You think what's-her-name really lives here?"

Kapri raised an eyebrow, her face still pale. "We've come this far." she muttered quietly, her eyes briefly flickering back to the figures. "She's gotta be here."

"I don't know what's going on." I stated with a frown as my own eyes fell back to the distant island that housed the remains of the orphanage. "But...we're still here." _If this is the future, then those figures can't be _us"I think we still have some time left."

"But, time for what?" Tori questioned with a frown of her own as her own eyes travelled back to the red and navy clad figures uncertainly.

"We'll divide into two parties, first of all. Who knows what we'll face inside, and it might work better if we split up." I stated hesitantly. Out of the group, I chose Kapri and Marah, seeing that they were the closest and that Marah's abilities would come in handy for our group, where as Tori's would come in handy for the other group.

"So, we're safe here, for now?" Dustin questioned quietly as we entered the castle.

I nodded. "It seems Time Compression hasn't started in this world just yet, but who knows how long until it will? We better work fast."

Bidding good luck to the others, we started off, fighting our way through many monsters. _Difficult_ monsters at that. It was hard, and our supply of items was almost completely depleted by the time we made it to the main stairs to the castle, but there was a glowing ring on the floor that when we stepped on it, it restored our strength.

Soon, the other group met up with us, mentioning that they, too, had to defeat a lot of difficult monsters, but had managed to make it through. With a final glance to everyone, to make sure they were all still there and alright, we made our way up the stairs and down a long corridor, and outside, to cross along the top of a wall. Ahead of us was a large tower with an ominous presence, and I swallowed heavily, biting back the sense of fear that began to overtake me as I walked towards it.

"This really is it." Tori mumbled quietly, gripping her whip tightly. "We're almost there...almost finished."

I nodded silently as we made it to the door and went in. _This is it... Ultimecia's here..._

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Another shorter chapter, but the next will probably be really long, so... Wow, the final battle is upon us. Yes, the Power Rangers add in was out of the script. I don't know if it fit in ok, but I wanted to add in a sense of foreboding and such, so...

Hope you like it. I need a new computer screen... Sighs

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"SeeD... SeeD...SeeD... Seed, SeeD, SeeD!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi


	50. Final Battle

(Ultimecia's Throne)

Making our way to the center of the room, my eyes wandered over the sparse details and slowly drifted to the ceiling, only to realize, there _was_ _no_ ceiling.

The clouds slowly parted to let the full moon shine down upon the interior of the room and I felt my eyes narrow as they travelled the walls, checking out every corner for any possible surprise attack.

There was nothing but gauzy, crimson curtains hanging against the walls and fluttering in a faint breeze.

Well, that, and the giant stairs leading up in the center of the room, up to a large golden throne with a giant stone gargoyle on the back of it.

A woman with long white hair sat in that throne, staring blankly at us with glowing red eyes. The dress she wore was now more black than anything else, and the tribal markings seemed to glow with barely concealed power. As her gaze travelled over us all, her eyes narrowed and became angry.

"...SeeD... SeeD...SeeD... Seed, SeeD, SeeD!" Her voice was deep and thickly accented as her eyes flared brightly. "Kurse all SeeDs..." she stated with a sneer. "Swarming like lokusts akross generations." She rolled her eyes. "You disgust me."

"Look who's talking." Kapri muttered quietly, rolling her own eyes.

Ultimecia's head shot in her direction, but then turned back to the rest of us. "The world was on the brink of the ever elusive 'Time-Compression'. Insolent fools!" Shooting into a standing position, she snarled at us and grinned evilly. "Your vain krusade ends here, SeeDs. The price for your meddling is death beyond death! I shall send you to a dimension beyond your imagining. There, I shall rule, and you will be my slaves for all eternity!"

Slowly, she began to descend the stairs, and her eyes turned to Kapri. "You." She growled lowly. "I brought you here because you wished it. 'I wish I was anyplace but here!' were your words, I believe." she cooed with a glare. "And yet, you joined my enemy. You would have served as my successor, but now, for your insolence, you shall pay dearly."

Frowning, Kapri shrugged. "Go evil? Been there, done that. Really wasn't worth it." she quipped with a mock thoughtful look before raising her crossbow.

Raising her arms to the sky, black fairy wings spread from Ultimecia's back and she lowered her arms to glare at us. "Whom shall I exterminate first?"

Shrugging, I braced myself and raced forward, slashing at her with my gunblade, but staggering back from a blow I took. Apparently, like sorceress Miko, she could create ice blades.

Dustin was kneeling at my side in a second, handing me a hi-potion as Kapri called Angelo to use Invincible Moon.

Tori used her Bad Breath attack, which she stole from a Malboro, to Blind, Silence and Slow Ultimecia.

Don't laugh. Those attacks can be lethal!

Marah cast Wall on all of us before Triple casting Meltdown on the sorceress, and Dustin raced forward right after to pummel her. As soon as he was done, Hunter was firing his rifle, and Tori snapping her whip.

Notice we were trying to keep her from attacking? I could sense the power within her and I was sure the others could, too. We didn't want to let her get off a full out attack, knowing it would probably kill us with one hit.

Kapri summoned Cerberus to come and cast Double and Triple on us all before sumoning Carbuncle quickly to cast Reflect.

Then Hunter summed Diablos to use his dark attack, which we realized didn't do much damage. Probably because Ultimecia was an evil creature, her powers stemmed from darkness, making her impervious to it.

Racing forward again, I performed the Fire Phoenix, staggering back as my vision swam blurrily from the lack of energy. Quickly using a potion, I shook my head and felt my eyes widen as I jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding more ice blades and a fireball. _Damn!_ I thought with a frown as I quickly cast Haste on myself, Kapri and Tori.

Kapri used her crossbow on Ultimecia before biting her lip and closing her eyes.

She was calling on Angel Wing.

Running forward, I took up a position in front of her, blocking Ultimecia's attempts to stop her, and countering with powerful Meldown spells.

A moment later, I felt a light touch on my shoulder and shivered slightly as I turned and took a step to the side, blinking in surprise when Kapri's glowing blue eyes focused warmly on mine before turning top Ultimecia and hardening. Raising a single eyebrow, she raised both her hands to the sky and a hail of lightning bolts shot down, hitting Ultimecia repeatedly before she threw her hands towards the ground and watching as the sorceress was engulfed in an inferno of fire.

Staggering back from the attack, Ultimecia collapsed to her knees, panting heavily before she turned her head to the side and grinned. "The ultimate GF... Allow me to show you... You will...SUFFER!" Cackling evilly, she raised a hand to her throne. "Griever! Make them bleed!"

There was a loud roar and a giant blue form flew over the back of her throne. Landing in front of us, it turned out to be a giant, blue lion with a blood red mane and eyes and black wings.

_Griever...?_ I thought in shock, my gaze quickly travelling to my finger, which once held my ring, and then to the chain I wore under my red shirt, with a griever designed pendant. Frowning deeply, I grasped my gunblade tightly and raced forward, keeping up the attack.

Marah re-cast Wall on all of us before summoning Carbuncle to re-cast reflect.

Blinking a moment at the giant GF, Tori shook her head and gazed at it uncertainly. Taking a single step forward, she narrowed her eyes and snapped her whip out, hitting it in the chest before casting Electrocute and dodging a powerful swipe of one of it's massive blue claws.

Dustin took about three steps back in shock before sighing as his head fell to his chest and shaking his head with a groan. Raising his fists, he rolled his eyes before racing forward and jumping up onto Griever's claw, running up it's arm and punching it in the head before flipping and kicking it on his way down.

Hunter simply raised an eyebrow before raising his rifle and taking aim, firing multiple explosive shots at Griever's head.

Casting volley after volley of her most powerful spells at the GF, Kapri was clearly getting tired, despite the amount of sheer power she had.

We kept our attacks up continuously, but we were getting tired, and our supply of items was neary completely depleted. Hunter was barely standing, Marah was on her knees, Dustin was unconscious, and Tori was standing shakily.

...And the only one left with an ounce of magical power was Kapri, who was currently leaning on me, because she was so drained.

And me? I wasn't doing good. I had a bad gash on my side, that I refused to allow Kapri to heal, seeing that she needed her magic to fight that thing, and was barely able to breathe, with a sensation of squeezing in my chest.

Laughing evilly, Ultimecia slowly stood up. "You have lost. Time Compression begins in this time. You have no power. Surrender." she cooed with a grin.

I glanced weakly at the others and winced as I noticed them struggling to keep going. _No... I won't let it end like this..._ Searching for any possible way to defeat her, I felt a surge of power within me and glared angrily at the sorceress. Taking a step forward, I shook my head and held my gunblade at my side. "I'll never give up!"

"_Never_!" Tori hissed angrily, shakily making her way to my side.

Dustin, who'd barely regained consciousness, crawled to our sides before slowly standing up and staring defiantly at her. "I don't think so!" he spat weakly, his eyes blazing with anger.

Closing my eyes, I fed off the power in me and raised my hand towards her, feeling something guide me. "Power of Air!"

"Power of Water!" Tori's voice echoed with a surprising strength.

"Power of Earth!" Dustin followed suit, just as strongly.

Opening my eyes, I watched in shock as three beams of power erupted from our hands and hit the sorceress and her GF head on, engulfing them in a mixed beam of light as the elements attacked them in full force.

I didn't happen to notice, however, Kapri's look of shock as her face paled.

Griever fell to the ground, fading to dust as the lights faded, and Ultimecia staggered weakly. "Time Compression will still begin... All existence, denied." she stated weakly, with an angry glare.

"Reflect on your...childhood... Your sensation... Your words... Your emotions... Time..." Her words almost became mechanical as she staggered backwards. "It will not wait... No matter...how hard you hold on..." Her evil gazed faltered into a pained one. "It escapes you... And..." Collapsing to her knees, she exploded into a large ball of fire, drowning out the last of her words.

I felt darkness overwhelm me as she faded into nothing, and weakly watched as the others collapsed one by one and faded away. The castle turned to blackness and I collapsed, welcoming the darkness...

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Like the reference to ending the battle? It just hit me out of nowhere.

Ok, so I lied. This chapter's not any longer, but I wanted to end it here. There's still one chapter to go, I think, which should be REALLY fun to explain and such. I should, hopefully, be done that chapter this week, as well. I'm already working on it and like where it's going, so far.

Hope you like it.

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"I wanna go there! To where Shane and I promised!"

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R+R please.

Thank you.

Tenshi.


	51. Ending Part 1

(Someplace Else, Normal POV)

Nothing could be seen but several human forms lying in blackness. One by one, they slowly came to and stood up or looked around uncertainly. The last one to stand was Hunter, and he gazed warily out into the blackness.

"Is it over?" he asked quietly, slowly standing up straight and joining the others. Giving a relieved look, he waved his hand. "Let's go! Let's go back to our time!"

Glowing portals began to flow sluggishly around them, each showing different memories from their lives as the floated by. Some were of different points of view of the Inauguration Ball, a couple were of the Dollet Mission. Some showed the reunion in FH, or battles they face in the past.

One showed in slow motion, the ice blade that pierced Shane in Deling City, and Kapri paled as tears formed in her eyes and the image showed his pained gaze as he slowly fell backwards.

Marah frowned deeply at an image of the jailor in the prison, beating Dustin.

Tori let a few tears fall as an image of Blake, failing the Dollet mission, passed by, and his reaction, and then several memories of him betraying them.

Dustin kept his eyes closed, refusing to look at the memory of fighting their Matron, or when he was convinced Garden was done for.

Hunter's eyes narrowed dangerously at an image of Kelly being held captive by Taylor and Eric, only to relax as they let he go. He was half tempted to run into that memory and go to her, but barely held back, knowing it wasn't a good idea.

"Where are we supposed to go?" Dustin asked in confusion, his eyes narrowed in confusion as he looked through the hundreds of memories as they floated by.

Marah frowned nervously as a look of uncertainty filled her. She eyed longingly, several images of Trabia Garden before the missile attack, but bit her lip and looked to Dustin who was watching their memories, lost deep in thought. Taking a step away from the portals, she stayed closer to his side, refusing to be swayed. "Careful." she said quietly. "Don't fall into the wrong time."

"Time... Place..." Kapri looked through the memories, focusing on all the ones that included Shane. Gasping silently at the image of their kiss in space, she felt tears streaming down her chin as she looked around. "Who I want to be with..." Frowning, she looked around more wildly. "Guys, where's Shane?!"

Everyone began to look around, and Kapri's eyes caught sight of a memory of her mocking him in FH and how she hugged him. Becoming more frantic, she took a step forward, before stopping, as an image of the flower field crossed slowly in front of her. "I wanna go there! Where Shane and I promised!" she cried, racing forward and jumping into the portal.

The others cried out immediately, and followed after her, jumping into the same portal, and each praying that Shane was all right.

Coming out in the flower field, Kapri immediately noticed that nothing had changed. Well, almost nothing. Miko was standing at the back of the orphanage in a long navy blue gown with her hanging down her back. Her gaze was happy and pained at the same time as she gazed on the people in the field.

Looking around again, Kapri frowned deeply, feeling her heart clench painfully. "Shane!"

There was no response. He wasn't there.

Looking back and forth wildly, Kapri began to run through the flower field, intent on finding him, no matter what. "Shane!" She looked around as she ran, feeling like she was being tugged. Biting her lip as she stopped a moment, she looked to the dark, cloudy sky. "Let's go home! Where are you?!"

(Somewhere Else, With Shane)

_...Where am I?_

Shane looked around in confusion as she slowly opened his eyes and sat up.

He was in the middle of a lush green forest, and frowned deeply as he slowly stood, shaking his head to clear it befoe he began to stagger.

"Shane! Where are you going?!"

Spinning on the spot, he watched as the younger version of him ran onto the back porch of the orphanage nearby, and bit his lip as he recalled what was going on. The younger version of him spun angrily to the building and he glared at the younger Miko as she exited after him.

"I'm gonna go find Sis!" the younger version of him shouted.

This had taken place a few days after Kelly left the orphanage. He'd decided he wanted to go out and find her.

"Shane!"

Ignoring her, the younger Shane turned and took off into the woods, while the older Shane watched with a frown before turning back to Miko.

_Matron..._ Why was he here? What was he supposed to do and where was everyone else? Where was Kapri...?

The scene grew foggy and Shane blinked as he shook his head, trying to see clearly as he stumbled forward. When the image cleared, he was standing right on the back step of the orphanage and Miko was approaching him.

"Excuse me, but have you seen a little boy run by?" she asked politely, though there was a mysterious gleam in her eye.

Frowning a little, he looked over his shoulder at the woods. "Don't worry. He won't go anywhere."

Nodding, she smiled a little before sending a pained glance to the woods and crossing her arms over her chest lightly. "I think so, too. Poor boy."

There was a flash of purple smoke and Ultimecia appeared, stagering weakly up to Miko as Shane turned and drew his gunblade.

"You're alive?!" he demanded harshly.

Frowning, Miko stepped to his side. "...The sorceress?" she questioned knowingly.

Nodding absently, he glared at the sorceress. "Yes Matron. We had defeated her, but..." As the sorceress approached, he took a step forward defensively. "Matron, stand back!"

Gently lifting a hand, she placed it lightly on his arm and stepped past him, looking at the weakened sorceress. "It's ok. There's no more need to fight. That sorceress is just looking for someone to pass her powers on to. I know, for I am one. In order for a sorceress to die peacefully, she must pass on her powers. I will accept them. I don't want one of the children to have to carry this burden." she stated softly as she walked forward and knelt in front of the sorceress.

"I...can't...disappear yet." Ultimecia stated weakly.

Sheathing his gunblade, Shane frowned as he watched Matron accept the powers, in the form of several lightning bolts. "Matron!" Racing forward, he dropped to his knees at her side as Ultimecia faded away.

Smiling gratefully as he helped her to stand, Miko looked at him curiously. "I am fine. You...called me Matron. Who...are you?"

"A SeeD. A SeeD from Balamb Garden." he answered honestly.

This, she frowned to, as something he couldn't identify came to her eyes. "SeeD? Garden?"

"Both SeeD and Balamb Garden are your ideas." he stated with a frown. "Garden trains SeeDs. SeeDs are trained to fight and defeat the sorceress."

"What are you saying?!" she demanded harshly as a light came to her eyes. "You're...that boy from the future?!" Shaking her head, she took a step back. "You do not belong here! You must return!"

_I would if I knew how._ he thought in confusion. _But...how?_ "...Matron?"

The younger Shane raced back into the picture with tears trailing down his cheeks and panting heavily. "...I can't find Sis..."

_She was long gone by then._ Shane thought as he watched the memory play on.

"Am I...all alone?" Turning to the older Shane, he shivered and frowned at him. "Who's he?"

"Nobody you need to know." she stated firmly, taking his hand and stepping back. Turning to the older Shane, her gaze warmed slightly. "Do you know how to get back to where you came from? Do you know where to go? Will you be all right?"

_I...don't know._ He thought uncertinaly, resolving to be strong. Saluting her, he nodded. _I'll be ok, Matron._

The scene faded to black, and soon changed into a desolate desert that stretched on for miles. Not one living plant or animal could be seen, but for the vultures circling in the sky. The sky itself was dark and cloudy, giving him a foreboding feeling as he looked around, seeing only mountains, miles away from him in every direction.

_What...do I do?_ Closing his eyes, he immediately thought of Kapri and his eyes snapped open again as he began to walk through the dry desert, shaking off the faint hunger and thirst pangs he was beginning to feel, and hitching up his gunblade a little, becoming more aware of it's weight.

_But...I'm not alone..._ Stopping, he looked around as everything seemed to darken. _If I call out, they'll answer._

"Where is everyone?!" he shouted loudly.

"Shane..."

Looking around, he frowned as he took a step forward, sure he heard Kapri's voice, but not seeing her. "Kapri! Where are you?!"

Echoing silence enveloped him as he looked around again and began to walk, feeling doubt creep into his heart. "Dustin! Hunter! Tori! Marah!"

Still no answer. Stopping again, his eyes narrowed and he felt a pang of hurt in his chest as he hitched up his blade again, noticing that it kept getting heavier.

_...Am I...alone? Kapri...? I want to hear your voice._

Closing his eyes, he frowned and concentrated hard, recalling all the memories he could of Kapri and straining to hear her voice.

_Which way do I go?_

He felt a strong energy surge through him and shook his head as he began to walk again, making his way through the empty desert and constantly looking around for some _sign_ of what to do and where to go.

_I can't make it back...alone._

A faint pain tugged at his heart as he began to run as fast as he could. "Kapri?!" he yelled as tears flooded his eyes. He ran in a single, random direction and ran as long and fast as he could.

"Where are you...?"

Her voice, but she wasn't there. What was going on?!

_Am I...all alone again? Where...am I?_

Soon, the image changed from the barren wasteland into a massive green field, that went on for miles in every direction, but for the golden, sandy beach behind him. The sky was green and the cloud a dark grey. Stopping his run, Shane sighed deeply as he realized he'd have hours if not days of walking to do. Starting off, he made the best pace he could and stuck to it.

Nothing happened. He just kept walking and walking and nothing seemed to change. Any sign of civilization was still miles away. The only thing that changed was that the sky had darkened considerably as the grey clouds turned to an almost black and seemed to overwhelm the sky.

After what felt like hours, Shane's steps became shorter, and his pace slower, as he wiped sweat from his face and gazed exhaustedly at the vast plains in front of him. Sighing again, he placed a hand on the hilt of his gunblade and began to stagger on, determined to keep going.

A strong wind blew as the sky darkened even more, and he soon saw a cliff approaching. Making his way to it, he looked over the edge and felt his heart drop painfully to see the endless river of Time Compression below him. Looking back, his eyes widened in shock and horror to find another endless river of compression behind him as well.

No place to go, he felt his hope fade away and collapsed to his knees, panting heavily for breath as he felt hot tears of frustration build up in his eyes. Burying his face in his knees, he closed his eyes and let the tears trail down his face as he thought about the others.

_Am I...stuck here?_

(With Kapri, Normal POV)

Still running through the flower field, Kapri grasped the chain around her neck briefly and shook her head. "Where are you?!"

Tori, Marah and Dustin had gone back to Garden, which had been brought back while they were gone, to see if he was there, and Hunter was searching the rest of the island alone.

Missing for hours, since they got back, no one had given up on him.

They wouldn't.

Racing through the vast flower field, Kapri soon found herself at the edge, by the stairs that led down to the old campfire they once told her about. Raising her hand to her neck, she closed her eyes and grasped his ring as a single tear fell down her face, falling off her chin to land on her hand.

_Please..._ she silently begged who or whatever was listening. _I need him..._

There was a surge in her and she opened her eyes, feeling the wind rustling the feathers of her Angel Wing ultimate attack as she looked again to the sky, following a small white ball of light as it disappeared amongst the massive, thunderclouds, that slowly began to darken and grow more threatening.

(With Shane)

Still sitting in the same place, he frowned and lifted his head from his knees, ignoring the wet trails on his cheeks as he slowly looked into the ominous sky. The dark clouds parted a little as a single, glowing, white feather slowly drifted from the heavens, towards him.

Lifting his hand, he watched quietly as the feather fell to rest gently in the palm of his hand.

There was a powerful surge inside him and he closed his eyes, seeing Kapri in the middle of the flower field as the Angel Wings spread from her back. When he opened his eyes, he found himself there, staring at her back, the wings gone. The sky was a deep orange, and as he slowly stood up, he frowned deeply.

Something wasn't right.

"...Kapri?"

His eyes narrowed in confusion when his soft call of her name went ignored. There was no chance of her not hearing it, since he was _right_ behind her, so what was going on?

Finally, she turned to him and he felt his eyes widen in horror, when instead of her beautiful blue eyes and teasing smile, he saw nothing distinguishable. Her face was swirled eerily, making it impossible to recall how she looked.

The scene quickly changed into a surge of images that passed so quickly, it was hard to keep them straight.

Blake glaring at him triumphantly as he fell from the float in Deling city, after being shot by Miko's ice blades. Miko's blank stare. Kapri was there, and she turned to him in horror, but again, her face was blurred.

Next, it was Kapri hanging on for dear life, on the side of Garden. He felt his heart leap in panic and tried to reach forward to grab her hand, but then he saw that her face was once again blurred and he paused, frowning deeply.

Then, she was in the space suit, standing in the locker room, looking at him through the window as he stared at her. Shivering and blinking in confusion, he felt his frown grow that her face was still blurry.

Closing his eyes tightly, he shook his head violently. "Stop it!" he yelled, opening his eyes and finding himself back at the ball at Garden. Everyone was dressed elegantly, and he noticed Tori and Dustin walking around, across the room, but their faces were blurred. Blinking back frustrated tears, he looked to where he knew Kapri would be standing and saw her in the short red dress, her back to him. Pointing to the sky, she slowly turned and he cried out in horror and panic as her face was once again obscured from view.

The scene changed to the presidential palace and he frowned when the same blurred face was shown.

Then, suddenly, the scene changed back to the dance, and Kapri's face was clear, but transparent.

"Shane..."

Her voice came to him weakly and he felt a tear run down his cheek as the scene switched back to the Presidential Palace, only this time, the whole of Kapri was transparent.

It was like she was fading.

"Kapri!!" He yelled desperately as he looked around wildly.

Different views of the Presidential Palace flashed by him and he blinked and creased his forehead as Kapri was shown again, but her face was much more horribly blurred. The scenes kept repeating, Kapri's form disappearing from view or turning horribly blurred, and he felt dizzy, closing his eyes to try and focus. He felt sick to his stomach and barely able to stand.

"...Shane..."

Shaking his head, he swallowed thickly and hesitantly opened his eyes to find himself back at the dance, but this time, Kapri wasn't there. She appeared for a moment, turning to smile at him, then disappeared. Appearing again, briefly, she was transparent and turned to walk towards him before fading away again.

Seeing a small object float by him, he frowned and narrowed his eyes, focusing on it. It was his ring. His Griever ring. Frowning, he watched as it floated to Kapri's spot, flickering once as Kapri was shown, clinging to the chain as she looked around uncertainly, and then faded again.

The Dollet mission was shown, and he saw Tori's face, glaring defiantly at the machine as she unleashed the machine gun on it. Dustin waving 'come on' and Marah's frantic look.

Kapri's face as he fell from the float in Deling.

Back in Dollet, Marah was seen, waving down at him and Dustin before she took a shaky step forward and tumbled down the cliff, to their level, rubbing her head and sticking her tongue out before she hopped back to her feet.

Hunter was seen goofing off in Galbadia Garden and pacing back and forth in front of them before he joined their group.

Dustin doing his martial arts in the hallway of Garden just before the Dollet mission.

The Ragnarok was seen, firing it's guns at Lunatic Pandora.

Kapri, letting her hair blow freely in the wind on Balamb Garden's 2nd Floor deck, when it first became mobile, but again, her face was blurred.

Blake dragging Kapri away, towards Adel's chamber, and then finding her standing alone in the hallway, looking lost in thought. Her face was clear, as was the smile when she turned to him.

Then it changed to a pained look from Kapri, who was on her knees, reaching for him as he fell from the float in Deling. She faded away and came back, as if struggling to remain there.

There was an explosion and he was reliving as he drove a car into the gate, running and climbing up the float until he stood in front of the seat there, but as he turned to where Miko and Blake were supposed to be, he was greeted with Kapri standing alone, in the Balamb Dance floor, in her red dress, holding the chain with his ring on it, looking scared.

_Kapri..._

Reaching for her as he longed to hold her, he watched as she smiled and walked towards him, appearing and disappearing again and again until she disappeared and didn't come back.

_No, come back!_

Shaking his head violently, Shane cried out in pain and collapsed to a knee as he closed his eyes tightly, feeling drained and so lost.

He saw the images of his friends, passing by quicker and quicker. The moments they shared, the battles and discoveries they made.

Then, he saw Kapri running through the memories, like she did in the Memorial. Racing to his arms, but where her face should have been, a black, empty hole stood. It changed again, to a close-up of her in the space suit, but...

The glass of her helmet shattered...

_NO!!!_

Head shooting to the sky, Shane felt his heart break and screamed as loud as he could as a single, final tear slipped from his eyes and he fell back onto the ground. Dropping flat to his back, his head rolled limply to the side and his eyes slowly closed, as the single feather he held, slipped from his hand to land on the ground and fade away into nothing.

._...I'm...sorry._

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...As I thought. This chapter was more than long enough, Still got another one yet to come, so don't send a mob after me just yet. I just have to finish it.

Hope you liked it. I won't post a preview for the next chapter because I don't want to give away what happens. That...and I'm being lazy. (Ducks as a frying pan of doom is thrown at my head) Hey! Watch it!

R+R please

Thank you.

Tenshi

P.S. I don't own it. Happy? (Pouts and runs off to cry)


	52. Ending Part 2

**Disclaimer** : Shut up. (Sighs) I got myself into the habit of saying it, so... I don't own it.

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(With Kapri)

Feeling a sharp pain in her heart, she stopped running and cried out as she clutched at her chest and looked around. She suddenly had a horrible feeling and the sense of panic grew even more as she found herself travelling through the time compression.

_Shane... Take me to Shane..._ she mentally pleaded as her watery blue eyes looked through so many memories.

To her horror, his face was growing more and more blurred, harder to remember, and soon, she found herself standing in a large, barren land. For miles in every direction, there was nothing but flat, dead land and not one plant or animal.

But... There _was_ a single shape, lying motionless on the ground.

"No..." _No, no, NO!_

Feeling her eyes widen and her jaw drop, Kapri cried out and raced forward, landing painfully on her knees at Shane's side before carefully and shakily leaning forward to pick up his head and place it in her lap. Brushing his forehead gently, she bit her lip hard when he refused to open his eyes. Her hands shook uncontrollably as she felt the tears welling up in her eyes.

_No,,,_ "Shane...?" she croaked weakly. _God, please...wake up!_

Trailing her hand down his cheek, she shuddered at the cool clamminess of his skin and tears began to slip out of her eyes as her fingers found the spot on his neck.

...Nothing.

She shook her head in violent denial, staring at his face intently and searching for some sign, _any_ sign that he was still there.

"Please..." Gasping painfully, her whole body began to tremble as she shook her head again. "Shane... Wake up." she begged.

Still nothing...

Letting out a pained cry, she fell forward, burying her face in his chest as she cried. Holding him tightly, she clenched her eyes tightly shut, praying with every fiber of her being that this was just a bad dream, and that she'd wake up to find him smiling down at her.

Suddenly, there was a bright light shining down on her, which she easily noticed even with her eyes shut. Opening them quickly, she looked to the sky and gasped as a white light shone down, sending the dark thunderclouds flying far away and replacing them with a clear, sunny blue sky.

The barren land began to change into the familiar field of flowers, the flowers blooming all around them, mostly in red and purples. The orphanage appeared, but no one stood there.

Thousands of petals fluttered around them, brushing gently against Kapri's tearstained face and a few landing lightly on Shane's pale face. Every sign of Time Compression faded away and the world returned to normal.

Biting her lip, Kapri looked around before her eyes fell to the head that laid limply in her arms and more tears coursed down her face. One slipped down her cheek to land on his, and Shane groaned slightly, his head turning to the side, but his eyes refusing to open.

Letting out a ragged cry of hope, Kapri held him close and dug into the last reserves of her magic, casting the most powerful Cure spell she could manage and laughing and crying into his chest at the realization that he was alive.

Many of the flower petals turned into white feathers and flew arond them almost lovingly before fluttering away, leaving them to live their lives in peace.

_Thank you!_ Kapri thought ferverently as she looked to the sky quickly. She didn't know who or what had saved him, but she was truly thankful.

(Some Place Else)

Standing in a large field, in the middle of the country side, near WinHill, Tommy sighed deeply and closed his eyes as he stood over a small stone slab on the ground. Opening his eyes, he raised his hand to his face and looked at the ring he wore, lost in memories of a lost love, as dark clouds passed by overhead.

**Flashback**

Looking around, it was night, in the exact same area, and a younger Tommy was holding his ungloved hand in front of him, looking at a single gold band lying in the center of his palm.

_Will she...accept?_

His leg cramped up a great deal, but he pushed it to the back of his mind as he felt his eyes narrowing.

This glade rested near WinHill, and was a quiet, peaceful place he often liked to visit when he needed to think. Recently, he'd been coming here a lot.

The sound of footsteps alerted him to another presence in the area, but he didn't move, recognizing the familiar, light steps of Kat as she walked towards him. The sound stopped right behind him and he felt a gentle hand run down his back almost soothingly.

Turning to face her, he smiled slightly at the gentle smile she wore. She was still in her apron, showing she'd just gotten off work, but to him, she was always beautiful. Scratching his head nervously, he felt his face heating up as her smile turned curious and he shrugged a little, turning to walk off, silently.

He knew what her reaction would be and anticipated it.

Sensing her moving, he turned to find her reaching out to him and quickly grasped her hand, holding it tenderly as he slipped the gold band on her finger.

Kat's eyes widened and filled with tears as she looked at the ring in shock before looking up to Tommy who gave her a shy smile. Soon, her face shifted into a huge smile as tears streamed out of her eyes and Tommy held up his hand, showing his own band, to which she followed.

Then, she launched herself at him, holding him tightly and crying for joy.

**End Flashback**

Taking a single step forward, he looked around the grassy knoll before crouching next to the stone and carefully brushing some flower petals off it.

'Katherine Oliver' was ingraved into the stone.

A single tear fell from Tommy's eye as he smiled and slowly stood up. Turning his back to the stone, he saw Kelly smiling and walking forward, while waving, with Jason and Zack behind her, in their normal clothing again. Waving back, he began to walk towards them when a shadow passed overhead and he looked up, smiling brightly when he saw Balamb Garden flying over head.

_They did it. I knew they could._

(A little later)

Sitting in the crystal clear waters of Balamb was a familiar form, holding a fishing rod on the docks of Balamb city. Sighing in boredom, he frowned deeply and felt his eyes narrow as he thought of the fight and people he left behind, hoping they were all alright.

Even Shane.

Staring blankly into the crystal waters, his eyes travelled to a ring on his finger and he bit his lip a little as he thought of a certain someone he desperately wanted to see, but at the same time, was afraid to face.

Shaking his head, Blake stared at the unmoving fishing float in boredom before turning to see Eric jumping for joy as he held a large fish he'd just caught. Scowling, he stood up angrily and threw down his fishing rod as he glared at his friend.

Behind the excited Eric, Taylor stood with her arms crossed over her chest, looking bored. Looking at Blake, she smirked a little before taking a single step forward, bracing her foot about an inch from Eric's back and pushing hard, sending him crashing face first into the water.

Giggling, she watched as Blake laughed and Eric popped up, looking like a kicked puppy. A _wet_ kicked puppy.

Suddenly, a shadow passed over them, and Blake looked up. Balamb Garden floated over head and he found himself smiling warmly, knowing everything was finally as it should be. Looking to the city, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes before opening them with a new determination and heading towards it.

(Balamb Garden)

There was a celebratory party going on, celebrating the defeat of Adel and Ultimecia, as well as the return of Kanoi and Miko Watanabi. Even Blake, Taylor and Eric had been allowed to return to the Garden, if they wanted, seeing as how Blake was being manipulated, and Taylor and Eric were just trying to show him they cared, by following him.

Now, there was a big, casual party going on in the ballroom. Everyone was there.

Marah was fiddling with a camcorder as the others goofed off and relaxed for a change. Once she saw the light come on, she giggled and waved at the lens before turning it and operating it, going over her friends with it.

Hunter was dancing around like a goof, on the dancefloor, grinning cheekily to Tori, who raised an eyebrow and looked quite unimpressed. It seems, though, that he didn't get the hint and kept dancing.

Seeing the camera, Tori turned away from Hunter and smiled warmly, waving to it briefly.

_That_ Hunter seemed to notice. He quickly jumped off the dancefloor and ran over beside Tori, waving violently and grinning broadly at the camera, while slipping an arm around her waist.

Glaring at him, Tori pushed him off and turned to stalk over to the re-instated Headmaster Kanoi, leaving Hunter to pout as he looked at the floor.

Seeing the camera, he raised his glass of wine, before turning and motioning for Miko to come over.

Hunter removed his hat and bowed beside Tori, to their former Matron, who bowed back just as formally, with a smile. Then, turning to the camera girl, he made a face and walked over, taking the camera and gesturing for Marah to go join Tori, placing his hat on her head.

Giggling, Marah ran over and stood next to Tori, both waving at the camera, before Marah blinked and laughed, gesturing for Hunter to turn it right side up.

Suddenly, he changed views to show three girls walking by and waved, the camera shaking a little when all three girls turned and waved back. Of course, Marah jumped in and glared at him before grabbing the camea and forcefully pulling it back to them.

Kelly is seen with the girls, and he quickly zoomed the camera in, smiling and waving as Kelly smiled a little and waved back. Then, Marah pointed to the side with a laugh and he turned to find Dustin wolfing down hot dogs as fast as he could handle.

Seeing the camera on him, his eyes widened in horror and he immediately began to choke, looking into his glass and throwing it down when he realized it was empty. Marah and Tori ran over, giggling and patting him on the back, helping him to breathe again and he glared at them before shooting up and chasing them furiously around the room, until he remembered the camera. Turning back to it, he picked up a hot dog and threw it at Hunter, hitting him dead between the eyes and laughing at the grossed out face the cowboy made.

Glaring at him, Hunter cleaned off the camera and his face before setting it up again and rolling his eyes when Marah once again pointed to the side. Following her gaze, he smiled brightly to see Blake stalking over to Tori, grabbing her firmly and kissing her deeply, and Marah blushed deeply before 'innocently' blocking the view and raising an eyebrow, reaching out to turn the camera even more.

There, on the dark balcony, stood Kapri, looking out over the night sky.

You see, when Ultimecia was destroyed, Kapri was permanently stuck there, in that world, but from the look on her face, she couldn't be happier.

Looking to a secluded area that the camera couldn't see, she smiled shyly and raised her hand, pointing to the sky and giggling a little.

Suddenly, the low battery sign began to flash, and before the hidden figure could be captured on film, the camera died, leaving Hunter groaning in disappointment, before he grinned devilishly, remembering the earlier kiss.

It seemed that Tori and Blake knew they'd been caught because they both blushed a deep red, and sent him twin deadly glares before chasing him around the room, demanding to have that tape.

(With Kapri)

Looking into the night sky, she smiled at the beauty around her. They were currenly sailing calmly over the vast ocean, and it was a clear, warm night out, showing the millions of stars in the sky and the bright, full moon.

A single shooting star flew by and tears of happiness came to her eyes as she shook her head and smirked, raising a finger to the other person on the balcony with her, pointing to it.

_Thanks, but I don't need a wish. I already have everything I could ever want..._ she thought freely as she sighed in contentment.

Beside her, Shane looked over and smiled warmly as he leaned against the railing, looking out over the ocean. Reaching out to her, he took her hand, seeing the identical griever ring Dustin had made her and pulling her to him as he pulled away from the railing.

Slowly swaying side to side, he danced with her, alone out on the balcony and feeling happier than he had ever felt before. Seeing her beautiful blue eyes staring at him warmly, he felt his smile grow and leaned forward, capturing her lips with his own in a tender kiss, filled with love.

Sighing happily into the kiss, Kapri leaned against him. ..._The man I love, and somehwere I belong._

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HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!

Hope you liked this fic and thank you for staying with me in it. I promised a happy ending, and that's just what you got.

If you're wondering how Shane was brought back, I guess, think of it as a higher power. I think, in the game, it was Rinoa's (Kapri's) sorceress powes that brought Squall (Shane) back, but it was never gone into, that I know of. Heck, for years, I hated the game because I thought he died in the end! LOL.

Anyways, R+R please.

Thank you everyone for staying with me and supporting me.

Tenshi


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